Forgive and Forget
by RubyDeeragon
Summary: Four years have passed since reclaiming Wall Maria and defeating the titans there. Life within the walls have returned to normal, more or less, and the scouting regiment continues their fight against the titans outside the walls. Mikasa however has taken it upon herself to be in charge of keeping an eye on Annie, still frozen in crystal. Femslash MikaAni. Rated M for later chapters
1. Just Another Day

Chapter 1

Author's Note: **Spoilers warning!** While this story is going to branch a bit from the actual plot, and there will be inconsistencies, it WILL contain spoilers up to at least chapter 78 of the manga, which is far beyond the end of season 1 of the anime. If you don't want spoilers from the manga/anime, then please do not read this story. You have been warned! Otherwise, please enjoy.~

Let me not forget to mention that this is my first entry within this fandom, as well as my first fanfic in quite a long time. I apologize for any bad grammar. I also welcome any constructive criticism, so please let me know what you think. :)

* * *

Just Another Day

'Another day that will be as uneventful as every other day for the past four years', Mikasa thinks dully to herself while wrapping her scarf firmly around her neck. A soft yawn escapes her lips as she tries to grasp for the energy to get her through the day, a feat that is increasingly difficult as the days go by. Her gaze moves towards the window, gray eyes scanning the nearly empty streets below, too cold and early for most people to venture out.

Her mouth opens slightly as she spots a short woman with blonde hair passing by. She notices a basket filled with bread in her arms, most likely on her way to set up a food stall before the morning crowds begin to emerge. It makes her think of a certain other short blond haired woman.

'That insufferable woman', she thinks bitterly while pulling her scarf up to cover her mouth. She grinds her teeth as she recalls the last time she saw Annie, before she hid herself away in a crystal tomb. Before she revealed herself as the female titan. Mikasa remembers feeling nothing but rage as they led Annie to the underground tunnel, but she did well to hide it up until it was obvious things were about to explode, literally.

She recalls how Annie looked in that moment she gave up the act. That maniacal, gut-wrenching laughter of hers seemed so out of character compared to her usual stoic, and often emotionless self. To Mikasa she looked like a broken woman at the end of her rope, doing irrational things out of desperation. The laughter likely served as a mask to hide how she really felt in that moment. She can't help but think how unfortunate it is that that's the only time she's ever heard Annie laugh. She then wonders how a normal, carefree laugh from her might sound like.

Despite her destructive actions, she feels that Annie is not an evil person herself. That there had to be another side to the story that she just couldn't let out. For what reason. Fear, perhaps.

'What could possibly have someone like her afraid? What exactly was at stake?' With that thought she recalls the colossal beast titan who clearly played a major role in it all, him as well as Reiner and Bertholdt. Her eyebrows draw closer as she falls deeper into her thoughts. 'What motive could they possibly of had to capture Eren? Is his unique co-ordinate skill that vital to them? Sure, it's extremely useful in what it does, but why did they feel that they needed to have it for themselves? Couldn't they have found a more peaceful way to go about things? Co-operating with us and telling us what they knew surely would've been far more productive than the method they chose to go with.'

The information that was found in Eren's basement, while informative about the origins of the titans through terrible experiments, among other things, it held nothing pertaining to a possible motive for those guys to attack humanity as they did. She also remembers what Bertholdt when Armin made his final attempt to negotiate with them. 'You are not bad, or evil really. But still, all of you must perish. It's too late.' This memory always manages to rekindle Mikasa's anger, that someone would think like that and make actions based on it that affected everyone. 'You're all my dear comrades, so I will make sure to kill you properly.' It was selfish, that's all that it was. A completely baseless excuse for mass murder, trying to justify their cause with twisted logic that only they could of understood. She fumes, slowly pulling herself out of those memories, this isn't how she wants to start her day.

There's no point in getting worked about these things because they will never be answered. All of them are dead now thanks to the efforts of the scouting regiment. Only Annie remains, locked far below ground in her crystal tomb. Some want to believe that she is actually dead within it, body preserved by whatever that thing is made out of. Hanji and herself are among the few that strongly believe Annie is still alive and likely waiting for the optimal time to come out. Or perhaps waiting for a rescue that will never come.

'It's been four years, there's no logical way she could still be alive, but then again titans are anything but logical. Even Ymir, when we found her near death after the battle with the beast titan, revealed her own history. How she'd wandered as a rogue titan for nearly 60 years while locked in a nightmare within her titan. Up until she ate Reiner and Bertholdt's friend and regained her humanity thanks to his shifter ability. One would think that 60 years would at least make her an old woman, yet she's still young in appearance, and certainly acts like any average teenager.'

With a sigh she pulls herself back to the present, she has a job to do, even if part of her thinks it to be a pointless waste of time, the other part is hopeful that Annie will awaken. She releases her scarf so it falls away from her face and looks up to the gradually lightening sky outside.

'Why do I care if she wakes up? Even if she does, nothing will change. Surely she would resist right away, she might even kill more people and wouldn't reveal any new information, or reasoning for the things she or the others have done. Torture wouldn't even be an option for the risk of her turning into a titan from the wounds.' She closes her eyes and takes a slow, calming breath.

'They will either keep her bound in a dark cell for the rest of her life as punishment, or execute her. Execution is by far the more widely supported option by those in command. If she were to be willing to co-operate, perhaps she could be spared and maybe even return to a normal lifestyle someday, but the likelihood of that happening is minuscule. She really seemed to have lost it in that final fight against Eren's titan. Could she even be the same after something like that, after everything. The weight of her actions may prove to be too much. Eren did say Annie had tears running down her face when he ripped open her titan's neck just before she turned to crystal. Perhaps that's why she refuses to wake, had she truly given up, was she that terrified, or is she trapped in an endless nightmare as Ymir was. Surely she has something, or someone, worth living for somewhere out there, I doubt she could have done all that she did without having something to protect. Or maybe I'm giving someone like her too much credit.'

Exasperated with her own thoughts Mikasa finally clears her mind as she leaves her room. Her hand still grasping the doorknob as a final thought crosses her mind, her face taking on its usual serious and determined expression.

'Regardless if Annie wakes up or not, someone has to be there on guard duty at all times. It may not be the most exciting job, but if, or when Annie wakes up I'll be there to stop her from hurting anyone, including herself, and to make sure she doesn't try to kidnap Eren again.' Mikasa runs a hand through her short black locks. Her break is nearly over, but she should still have enough time to grab a bite to eat before she relieves whoever took up post while she was away, most likely Hanji or Levi.

* * *

Sasha is loitering around the dining hall as usual, scavenging as much food as she can for breakfast. It's when she is scarfing down a bowl of oatmeal that Mikasa wanders in, sitting down at the table across from the brunette with her own tray of food. Sasha doesn't even notice her until her bowl is empty, setting it down with a pout that it's all gone already.

"Oh Mikasa, good morning!" Sasha's loud cheerful voice resonates in the big open room, offering a toothy grin to Mikasa.

"Morning," Mikasa offers a soft response as she focuses on her meal of eggs, bread, ham and some seasonal vegetables. Placing her elbows on the table and supporting her chin on her hands Sasha watches Mikasa in silence. A small frown pulls at her lips as she notices the dark bags that have formed beneath her friends eyes. She understands Mikasa's job, and has always tried to make it a point to go and visit her as often as she can during her shifts guarding over Annie's crystal. What she doesn't understand is why Mikasa works such long shifts, no normal person could last as long as she has. No one makes her do it either, she could easily get others to. But for some reason Mikasa just feels that she should be the one out there the most.

'Is it really necessary? Annie's probably dead in that crystal thing whatever it is anyway. Poor Mikasa is going to work herself to death at this rate.' She keeps her thoughts to herself, trying not to let the concern show too much. Having matured a bit over the past four years, Sasha's learned to respect the fact that Mikasa prefers eating in silence, especially this early in the morning.

It's not long before Mikasa is neatly stacking her empty coffee mug and utensils onto the now empty plate.

"Uh, Mikasa?" She stops her just before she picks up her plate to leave, gray eyes now focused on her.

"What is it Sasha? I don't have any leftovers for you today." Sasha can hear how tired she is, her voice cracking a bit. She chuckles and waves her hand in dismissal towards the comment about food.

"Ah, no no, I wasn't going to ask about that. I just wanted to see if you're working all day today. Although, I guess it would be better to ask if you'll have a free day anytime soon? Everyone misses you, and we're trying to plan a little get together." She watches on expectantly as Mikasa crosses her arms and hums in thought.

"Well, I plan on working everyday for the next week or so before I take any extended time off." At this Sasha frowns, she knows that Mikasa's definition of 'extended time off' only means one day, two at the most. But she also knows it's the most free time she'll give herself and offers a small smile.

"Alright, so in about a week after you've rested up let's do something fun with everyone, okay?" She flashes a grin and a thumbs up at her, her grin widening when Mikasa offers a small smile of her own and nods.

"That sounds fun Sasha, I'll let you know an exact day later in the week."

"Okay, it's a deal! I'm holding you to it!" Sasha gets up and walks the short distance around the table and pulls Mikasa into a tight hug. Something that most wouldn't attempt but Sasha knows she can get away with it, once in a while anyway. Her voice softens in this close proximity to her friend. "Don't work too hard okay? I'll come by tonight and keep you company for a bit while you're on duty, and I'll sneak you something tasty to eat. I saw someone making sweet bread with icing earlier and I stashed a few pieces." She pulls away with a sly grin and offers a wink at Mikasa before grabbing her tray for her. "I'll take care of these for you."

"Thank you Sasha, you're always looking out for me. I need to get going now though. I'll see you tonight." Mikasa bows slightly, patting Sasha on the shoulder as she walks by towards the exit.

"Anytime Mikasa, you just let old Sasha know if you ever need anything, okay?" Mikasa waves over her shoulder as she heads outside into the cold, the sun is now just above the wall, still morning. The dining hall is a short walk to the stables, which is where she is headed. She has to ride by horse to a re-purposed castle, much like the scouting regiments other castle that they use as a base occasionally. This one is a few miles outside of Stohess within Wall Rose's open fields, just far enough away from civilization should something bad happen.

Riding there at a comfortable pace she arrives within two hours, riding at full speed would take much less time, about an hour, but she is in no rush today. She walks through the cold empty halls, lit only by the glowing stones that they excavated from the cavern where Historia's father turned into a massive titan. They still don't know much about them, but their glowing light has changed everyone's way of life by providing them with a constant source of light.

Mikasa walks down several flights of stone stairs bringing her deep below ground, and down a short hallway with a heavy steel door at the end. Only a single small barred hole just big enough to see through decorating it.

"It's Mikasa." She knocks once, calling out clearly to whoever is on duty right now. She waits a moment before she hears the sound of maneuver gear clanging softly against fabric, accompanied by soft footsteps getting closer to the door. A husky voice greets her as the door slowly opens outwards.

"Yo Mikasa, you're here a little early aren't you?" Hanji stands in the doorway, a small notebook and pencil in hand. Their face shows how tired they are, but their smile doesn't falter. They step aside so Mikasa can walk into the next section of hallway, locking the door shut again.

"I woke up a bit earlier than I meant to, it's not a problem though. I'm ready for my shift, and you look like you could use some rest." Mikasa turns her gaze towards another heavy steel door with multiple locks on it at the end of the hallway, she frowns slightly.

"Any updates?" She focuses her gaze back on the taller brunette standing next to her. Hanji shakes their head and offers an exaggerated shrug.

"No, nothing new about the crystal, it's as solid as ever," they pause a moment and flip through the notebook, pointing to a few numbers indicating temperature. "However, I have noticed a slight increase in the temperature of not only her cell, but within this hallway as well. The heat does seem to be radiating from the crystal as it feels warmer the closer you get to it, but still there are no noticeable physical changes. The crystal is still cool to the touch as well. I'm not sure if this is any indication that things may change soon, but be on high alert and keep an eye out for any minor changes. If something does happen be quick in following the procedure we've gone over in such a case." Hanji's serious tone sets Mikasa a bit on edge with this new development. However small it might seem, this is the most that's happened in these four years.

Hanji hands Mikasa the small notebook that is shared between everyone that does guard duty, making it easier to keep all related notes in one place. A quick flip through shows just how little has been added. Only a few pages and most of those were from the first few days, randomly a doodle can be found when someone got really bored.

"I'll perform more visual checks than I usually do, just in case. As small as the temperature change is, I have no doubt that it's a sign that she's becoming active within. I noticed a few more extra guards than usual up stairs on my way in. If something happens I'll make sure they are alerted and get the message out as quickly as possible. I'll hold things down here as long as necessary." Mikasa's face taking on the expression of a hardened soldier ready to fight.

Hanji nods and pats her shoulder with a smile, her own expression softening a bit from the gesture.

"If she does awaken do try to keep her alive, the information she holds could be of vital importance. If she refuses to co-operate however, don't hesitate to destroy her. Even if her knowledge could be of value, it's not worth losing any more people over it." Hanji stretches and yawns before handing a ring of keys to Mikasa.

"Well, I'll be on my way then. I need to take care of some things tomorrow. I think Erwin mentioned that he would come by here at some point to check in on things soon. You take care of yourself, Mikasa."

Hanji makes their way out. Mikasa offers a small wave when they turn back, flashing a smile before turning down the next hallway out of sight.

Mikasa locks the door and takes a slow breath before turning back to face the cell door further down the hall, Annie's crystal is locked within. She shoves her weariness aside and looks down to the small armchair next to the cell door. That will be where she stays for the majority of her 120 hour shift. Silently she walks up to the chair, sitting down and finding a comfortable position. She pulls out the notebook Hanji left with her, flipping it open again to the last few scribbles that were left in there.

It's all about the temperature changes, which hold no explanation but is clearly radiating from the crystal. Her eyes shift to the sealed door unable to see within from where she sits.

'It certainly feels warmer than it ever has, it's always been a consistent temperature down here but never warm like this. Annie, are you finally going to wake up? What will you do when that happens?' She leans back against the chair closing her eyes.

'It doesn't matter whatever she decides to do. When that happens I won't let her out of that room, no matter what.'

There isn't much to keep herself entertained down there. So she spends her time taking short naps, taking quick peeks through the small hole in the cell door, and giving status updates to the guard who is tasked with checking in with her. Today it's someone she doesn't know, a newer recruit probably. He makes the trek down to the basement door every few hours to make sure if Mikasa needs anything.

Seven hours into her shift Mikasa decides to do a full visual check by going inside the cell. She unlocks the several locks on the door before pushing her full weight against it, it's heavy and the hinges are a bit rusted so it takes more effort than it should to open it. Like everywhere else the cell is lit only by the illuminated rocks hung up along the walls. Closing the door behind herself Mikasa descends a few steps and crosses the moderately sized cell. It's big enough to have several people within at once but not tall enough to allow Annie to transform into a titan without risking her own life.

'It's so much warmer standing next to it,' she realizes when she's so close to it. The height of the crystal puts Annie's face just above eye level for Mikasa. The light from the rocks glint off of the sharp clear edges, making it easy to see Annie within, and to make it easier to spot any abnormalities. She slowly circles around the crystal, examining it thoroughly from top to bottom.

"Nothing looks any different," she says softly while placing a hand against the surface. Despite the warmth it is radiating it still feels cool to the touch, just as Hanji said. "This doesn't make any sense, Annie, just what are you up to?" Gray eyes narrow as she studies Annie's face closely. Her harsh gaze softening only moments later. The sorrowful expression frozen on the blonde's face tugs at something within herself. "Why did you have to get frozen with that look on your face?"

Mikasa pulls her hand away from the crystal but continues to stand there. 'She always carried herself with a cocky or bored expression, that sad look doesn't suite her at all. Then again, why do I care how she looks?' With a huff she heads back for the door, tossing a glance over her shoulder once more at the crystal.

"I wish you would hurry and wake up Annie. Haven't you slept long enough? Watching you in there like this is getting old. I'd love to have the chance to kick your ass again as soon as you do come out. Just like I did that time years ago when we were just trainees, when it was just you and me out there that night." Her voice grows quieter as the memories from that night flood her mind, a light blush paints her cheeks, which only makes her angry. Those memories always leave her feeling confused. She shuts the train of thought down before it gets to her, forcing the color from her cheeks.

Mikasa leaves the cell with a blank expression and sits back down on the bench. 'So embarrassing. It's pointless to think back on such things,' she leans back and closes her eyes, relaxing as much as she can. Perhaps a short nap will help clear her head.

Out of earshot and out of sight, within the cell a small crack begins to form on Annie's crystal. The tiniest amount of steam begins to seep out, the woman within remains motionless, for now.

* * *

A/N: So that's it for this chapter, sorry if it's a bit slow, and short. I'll try to work on longer chapters later on if I feel it's necessary. Shorter chapters mean faster updates though so, we'll see. I'm about half way done with chapter 2 already, so expect it up withing a few days. Also I'm sticking to Hanji being genderfluid as they are in the source material (I think that's the right term, correct me if I'm wrong), so they'll be referred to as 'they/them/their/etc.' Again please let me know what you think so far, concerns, things you are looking for to possibly seeing come out of this, anything! Until next time. :)


	2. Broken Shell

Chapter 2

A/N: Not much to say here, same disclaimers apply, spoilers and more spoilers throughout. You'll get a small glimpse into a few side pairings in here, hopefully it brings as much humor to you guys as it does to me. I didn't edit this chapter too heavily so I hope there are not too many errors. Please enjoy! :)

* * *

Broken Shell

Mikasa fades in and out of sleep for the remainder of the day, not really noticing the continuously increasing temperature as the day wore on. She is rubbing the sleep from her eyes when someone knocks at the outer door.

"It's me Mikasa, open up." She immediately recognizes Eren's voice through the door and opens it. The scent of food wafts past her nose and she looks down at the satchel that he's holding out towards her. "Here, you should eat. Sasha got held up and asked me to bring you this. She also said that she promises to come here as soon as she can." Mikasa graciously accepts the satchel, likely filled with bread, potatoes, cheese and some dried meats, enough to get her through a few days.

"Thank you Eren. Anything interesting happen today?" She tries to make some conversation, not in any hurry to be left in solitude again. She also doesn't allow Eren beyond the threshold, as per the rules of this whole arrangement he isn't allowed any closer to Annie than this door. Although she feels even this is too close for him to risk. They are being exceedingly cautious in the case she does wake up and tries to kill or kidnap him again.

"Just the usual, Jean being an idiot, Levi being a hard ass, and Armin can't shut up about tactical stuff with Erwin. I'm sure you've heard of this, but they're planning their next recon mission outside of the walls within the next month." Mikasa's gaze falls a little.

"Yes I've heard talk about it, I don't know the details though. I spend so much time here I lose track of a lot of things going on out there. I'm going to lose my edge at this rate." She looks back up as a hand grasps her shoulder, a grin on Eren's face.

"You won't, I know you won't. You're stronger than anyone else out there, this downtime won't be able to take that title." Mikasa offers a small smile and nods. Whether he really means such a thing or not, the sentiment makes her feel a little better. Eren removes his hand from her shoulder while glancing behind her towards the cell door, gesturing to it. "Has anything changed with that?"

Mikasa throws a glance over her shoulder before shaking her head. "A little, but nothing alarming. There has been a slight increase in temperature down here and it's definitely coming from the crystal. Hanji hasn't figured out an explanation for it, but we assume that it means Annie may finally come out soon. The few extra guards stationed here are to remain on high alert, just in case."

Eren's face becomes serious as he absorbs the information. "Maybe I should stay out here then.. uh." Mikasa holds up a hand, stopping him mid-sentence.

"No, if she does happen to wake up we need for you to be nowhere nearby. We don't know what she will do once she's out. Add to that when we inform her about Reiner, Bertholdt and their other comrades. How she reacts will be unpredictable. Seeing as even Bertholdt was able to throw her to the side back then, we don't know if she'll share that attitude or if she'll be out for more blood. For how long she's been like that, Annie may even suffer memory loss from all the trauma. There are just far too many unknown factors at hand." She could see the disappointment all over his face, but that is how things are and he would just have to accept that.

"Che, I know." He drags a hand through his hair while letting out a frustrated huff. "I know, doesn't make this suck any less though. For you too, being stuck out here as often as you are."

"Eren, while this may not be the most exciting task it is still my duty to carry out no matter what, just as you have your own duties to perform. I knew full well what I was getting into when I volunteered for this."

"Right," he drops the topic, as they have argued about it countless times before, an argument he always lost. He points to the satchel in Mikasa's grasp. "Make sure you eat. I'm going to head back now before Levi locks me out again. Sasha should be here soon enough."

"I will, thank you Eren for coming by." She watches as he makes his way out, resealing the door once he's out of sight. She turns around and leans back against the door for a moment pulling her scarf closer to her face.

'Levi locks him out, that man is anal about everything so I'm not surprised.' She laughs softly, 'those two being a couple never ceases to amaze me.' Gazing down at the satchel in her hand she pushes away from the door. 'Well, might as well eat.' She spends the next few hours between nibbling on food and doodling in the notebook. Even polishing the blades in her maneuver gear, she may not of had to use them for a few years but she keeps them sharp and ready.

It's about midnight when she starts to notice how much warmer it's become in the basement compared to when she first got there. So much so that it's becoming uncomfortable and she begins to sweat a bit. She tugs her scarf down from her face, at first thinking it was just her clothes making her too warm. It's then that she also notices the steam gradually leaking beneath and through any cracks on the cell door.

"Shit." She rushes to her feet and approaches the door cautiously. Steeled eyes peer in through the small barred hole, squinting to see past all the steam that has built up inside. Her eyes widen as she catches sight of the large crack that has formed down one side of the crystal, steam pouring out of it. "I got careless." A sudden hard knock on the other door behind her nearly makes her jump out of her skin.

"Mikasa? Let me in, it's Sasha. I brought you some of that sweet bread." Sasha shouts from behind the door with her sing song voice. Mikasa runs to the door, the sense of urgency and the serious look on her face already sending bad vibes to the brunette.

"Sasha! Go get Levi and the others now! There's a massive crack in the crystal and steam is pouring out of it! It doesn't look like Annie has moved at all yet, but I need you to go and get them. Have someone upstairs fire the signal, hopefully the guards on the wall will see it. They should, but just in case I need you to hurry back to town for them. With luck, they will have been notified of the signals and you'll meet them halfway, at that point just follow whatever orders they give you."

Sasha hesitates for a moment, the thought of trying to stay there with Mikasa crossing her mind, but the look she is giving her is enough to keep her from doing so. It would be pointless to argue with her right now and she knows it's important to make sure the others get the signal.

"Okay Mikasa, please stay safe, I'll get them here without fail!" Sasha throws up a hasty salute before bolting out of the basement, leaving her precious satchel of sweet bread next to it with the hopes of enjoying them when she gets back.

Mikasa sighs and gathers herself, calming her nerves as she approaches the cell door once again. She glances through the hole, still seeing no signs of movement. It takes but a moment to unlock it and shove it open with her adrenaline pumping. A rush of steam and heat is all that greats her, and it's enough to make her take a step back. She waits there a moment as it clears enough to improve visibility in the room.

She begins making her way in while doing her best to ignore the heat that bombards her, face barely shielded as she pulls her scarf up again. The heat only intensifies with every step closer to the crystal. Mikasa readies her blades, stopping a few feet short of the cracking crystal. Pieces have now fallen to the ground, as the crack continues to pop and spread throughout.

"So this is it then, Annie?! If you can hear me, I suggest you not resist! I will take more than just your fingers this time! I will not hesitate to take your head clean off your shoulders if you try anything!" She bares her teeth as more and more of the crystal shatters and falls to the ground. 'If she resists, don't hesitate. Those are the orders. Give her no chance to escape, or to shift. If she complies, stall for time until the others get there.'

A loud pop echoes through the room as it finally splits all the way through. A wave of searing heat bursts out causing Mikasa to flinch but she refuses to yield. She holds her ground as the front half falls down and shatters to bits on the hard ground next to her. She tenses as Annie's body shifts, no longer fully supported by the rigid structure. She's limp and only held up by the other half of crystal that still stands with her right arm trapped inside. Mikasa's expression is fierce as she's ready for anything, eyes focused for any movement that isn't just gravity weighing the girl back to earth.

The final half gives way, cracking and splitting, falling to the ground. Annie's arm is freed, her body still limp, lifeless, and she too starts to fall. Acting quickly Mikasa effortlessly catches the smaller woman in one arm, not wanting to risk any injuries to her from a fall. She stays like this, on one knee with Annie on her arm and a blade held dangerously close to her throat as she watches her intensely.

Nothing. One minute. Two, three... Ten minutes pass and still nothing, no signs of movement. 'Is she even breathing?' She focuses her eyes on Annie's chest, watching and listening closely. She hears it. It's faint but she is definitely breathing, slowly, as if in a deep sleep, her chest only just barely moving. Despite this she doesn't let her guard down and continues to observe the blonde. Eyes scanning her from head to toe, noting all of the unchanged features. Soft skin, small body packed with lean muscles, a calm face, blonde hair still held in its usual messy bun, she pushes down the odd urge to move some of the fringe from her face. 'It really is like she's just sleeping.'

"Seriously Annie, you finally come out of that thing after all this time and this is it? You're just going to continue to sleep." She lets out a huff, this situation is not how she imagined it would be. At the least she expected insults to be thrown at her, not a comatose body in her arms. 'I guess I should be thankful that things are so peaceful right now. This will likely change when she does wake up.' Mikasa stays like this for what feels like forever, holding the woman almost tenderly in silence. Her eyes never leave the well defined features of Annie's face.

"Ooooooh, I can't wait! She's made us wait so long, right Levi! Maybe she'll even let me experiment on her!" The peace is broken as the booming voice that could only belong to Hanji echoes throughout the basement. The sound of several rushing footsteps and the familiar clang of maneuver gear accompany their shouts, and an annoyed response from Levi. Something about shutting the hell up and getting serious.

"Uwaaaahah it got really hot in here!" Hanji shouts once again, halted at the door from the blazing heat, though to Mikasa it feels like it's slowly starting to cool.

"Mikasa, what the hell. Is she dead or what?" Levi, always so calm, as he makes his way closer while ignoring the heat. His steely eyes focus solely on Annie's unmoving form. He stops next to her, still analyzing every aspect of the scene. "Well?"

"She hasn't moved at all, she is breathing, but just barely. I kept her from hitting the ground when she fell out. She's shown no signs of being aware though." She hears the voices of a few of the guards outside the door, anxiously waiting for something to happen. She also catches the sound of Sasha, Jean and Connie's voices among them, trying to keep the newer recruits calm. Hanji makes their way into the room, finally able to ignore the heat.

"No one else come in here. If she's just pretending I don't want anyone else in the way." Levi calls out to the group as Hanji steps next to them. Without a word they kneel down and start examining the unconscious blonde, checking her pulse, temperature, and at least a dozen other things. All the while Mikasa continues to hold her, glancing away briefly when Hanji lifts up her hoodie, they didn't miss a single detail. She looks back when Hanji is finished and pulling Annie's top back down.

"Hmm, there are no external signs of trauma, no remaining wounds, not a single bruise. Everything looks perfectly normal, although I suspected as much given the nature of the titans healing properties." Hanji says as they pull up Annie's right arm, inspecting every inch. They stop at her hand. "This thing, can't let her have this anymore." With a sigh they pull off the spiked ring that Annie used to trigger her last shift. "One small oversight like this was all it took." The other two gaze at the tiny accessory in their palm.

"Well this certainly isn't as exciting as I thought it would be, honestly I was hoping she would at least be conscious and put up a fight. This is rather pathetic." Levi argues, clearly disappointed there are no immediate signs of things getting interesting. Mikasa sighs internally as those were her exact thoughts moments earlier. Except she really is happy that things are not chaotic right off.

"What to do now? We were given full reign over what we do with her, since everyone fully understands now that we're the only ones capable of handling something like this. Putting her down right now is an option, and just not risk her getting loose." Levi wonders aloud, the way he says it makes it sound like he's talking about an animal and not a person.

Mikasa's heart races at the proposal, a sick feeling settling in her stomach. Sure killing her is an option, it would probably even be a mercy compared to keeping her alive down here for who knows how long. 'That seems like such a waste though, not even giving her a chance after all this time.' Hanji is the one to speak up, pulling her from her own thoughts.

"Let's bring a bed in here, one of the extra's from upstairs and we'll bind her so she can't move or injure herself whenever she does wake up. We'll have to gag her too so she can't bite her tongue. I would like to be able to continue to observe her for a little while longer, this is a rare opportunity after all. I believe there is a strong chance she may experience some memory lose, she may not even be the same person. Of course, this is just a theory, we won't know until she wakes up. If possible I want to hear what she might have to say either way."

No one is surprised by the request from Hanji, it was expected really. That never ending curiosity to know more about titans. Even if they can't physically torture Annie, there are plenty of other things that could be done to get information out of her. This thought sends a shiver down Mikasa's spine, torture is not something she agrees with. She hears Levi make an annoyed sound as he stands, signaling to the others in the hallway to go and gather whatever Hanji needs.

"Whatever. If this backfires it will be on your shoulders, I'll have nothing to do with this. Keep me updated should anything interesting come from your games, or if you're ready to kill her, I'll happily oblige." The cold deathly stare in his eyes could freeze hell as he glances down at the unconscious girl once more. This person killed his four closest friends and comrades, and so many innocent others. To him she is nothing more than an insect to be squashed, showing any amount of mercy or compassion towards her is foolish.

Levi exits the cell, leaving Mikasa and Hanji alone for a moment. Sasha is the first to slip into the room after he's out of sight, and she can hear Connie and Jean not far behind. She walks up next to Hanji, gently placing a hand on the older brunette's shoulder as she kneels down with them. Despite everything Annie had done to them, she can't help but feel kind of sad seeing her like this, a sentiment that is shared with most present in the room.

Hanji reaches up, giving her hand a firm squeeze before moving closer to Annie. "Now that Levi is gone I can finish my exam. I didn't want to hear him complaining about this part, but we can't afford to miss anything." If any weapons or devices are hidden, they were going to find them. No pocket is left unturned, her hair tie is removed when nothing is found in her pockets. The loose blonde locks pull Mikasa's attention, seeing her hair down only ever happened on rare occasions before, the sight keep's her distracted as Annie's boots are removed, then socks, everything right down to her underwear.

None of the women bat a lash at the exposed body but they hear the guys behind them choking, not expecting their old comrade and enemy to be stripped right in front of them. This earns them a deathly glare from both Mikasa and Sasha.

"Look away you pervs!" Sasha yells at them and they both face the other way quickly.

"It's not our fault, we didn't know they were going to just do that ya' know. Seriously, next time warn someone before you start stripping some unconscious person!" Jean complains while Connie remains quiet, blushing a vibrant red as he tries to unsee something he should have never seen.

Mikasa turns back around to watch Annie's face, pointedly not looking at her exposed half as Hanji finishes their exam, literally nothing is left unchecked. She could hear the disgust in Sasha's voice when she offers a quiet complaint of her own at just how in depth they went, and that Hanji better wash their hands before even thinking of touching her later. The remark is rewarded with soft laughter from Hanji as they replace the clothing.

"Sasha dear, that's hardly the worst of places these hands have been in my lifetime." The younger brunette pales at the comment.

"D-don't tell me something like that, Hanji! How could you?" The outburst only causes Hanji to laugh louder as they stand up, wiping their hands off on a cloth. "Don't you dare think that just wiping your hands off like that is good enough either!"

"Here I was hoping for a nice, warm hug after all my hard work. This kind of thing is hard on me too you know." Hanji holds their arms open, not really expecting Sasha to hug them but does it for more laughs. They aren't disappointed as Sasha backs away slowly from them while frantically shaking her head.

"No, nononononono, don't you even dare! I will not make you dinner for a whole month if you touch me right now!" She is hysterical, but even Mikasa can tell she's not seriously mad, just disgusted and overly dramatic.

"So I take it you didn't find anything else?" As funny as this is to watch the two flirt and bicker, Mikasa wants to get things moving again. She's been in the same position holding Annie for well over an hour now and her arm is beginning to get tired. It would've been just as easy to set her down on the ground, but she just didn't want to. Her question effectively cut them both off as they look down at her.

"Ah, nope, she's clean. We'll keep her belts though, she won't be needing them anyway. Her Military Police jacket as well, I'll have it returned to them." Hanji glances up to the doorway and sees the recruits standing there with the bed, they hesitated to enter earlier. "Bring that in here and set it up in this far corner over here." They point where to place it and they waste no time to do so, taking a quick leave once they're done.

"We sure are going out of our way to make someone like her comfortable, aren't we? She doesn't deserve more than the cold ground if you ask me." Of course it's Jean again that complains. He has a good personal reason to be bitter though and no one holds that against him. Annie did contribute to his ex-boyfriend Marco's death after all. His anger and dislike for her is completely understandable. Connie places a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Jean, it's not up to us. I'm no happier about this than anyone else is. She killed so many of our comrades. Even my whole village got screwed up because of her allies, even if she wasn't directly involvement with that, it still sucks. But all we do is take orders, let them figure out the hard stuff." Jean just growls in his throat and pulls away from his friend.

"I'm well aware of that, fuck!" He kicks the heavy door on his way out, not even flinching from what should of been a painful impact. He leaves without another word, knowing he needs to cool his head. Everyone left in the cell sigh collectively and Mikasa decides it's time to move. She stands slowly, her joints aching from the prolonged position and added weight, but she pushes past that and swiftly walks to the simple bed.

"Hm, those foolish boys didn't bring everything I asked for. I'll be right back, we need proper material to bind her." Hanji walks out, Connie opting to follow them and help find whatever they needed. Sasha stays behind, quietly observing Mikasa as she continues to stand next to the bed with Annie in her arms. She takes notice of the soft gaze that she holds towards the unconscious blonde. A strange feeling washes over her, and at that moment she can't decide if it's good or bad, she keeps it to herself though as she walks up next to her.

"She won't be putting herself to bed you know." She offers quietly with a smile at the taller woman. Mikasa seems to pull out of a daze.

"Yeah." A simple response, one that offers Sasha no insight about what's on her mind as she finally lowers Annie to the bed. It's quite old and squeaks a bit as her weight settles on the mattress, it certainly won't win any contests in comfort but it's better than a floor at least.

"Are you okay Mikasa? You seem kind of zoned out." She looks up at her friends face with genuine concern. Mikasa offers a faint smile with no energy behind it, she could tell it is fake but lets it slide.

"Yes I'm fine. This has just been a long day, it's been a while since I got so worked up. I really am loosing my edge." Before Sasha has a chance to rebuke her comment Hanji and Connie make it back, both with armfuls of thick leather straps, fabrics and various other items.

"Alright, let's get these on her. Connie if you could take care of the ankles, I'll take care of her arms, hands and mouth. Mikasa please go ahead and strap her torso, hips and thighs down. Make sure they're secure, but not too tight." Hanji is quick to work with strapping Annie's wrist above her head, and then starts to wrap her hands up with the soft fabric to form mitts on them. "Can't let her be able to scratch her own palms either."

Both Connie and Mikasa approach the situation with much less enthusiasm, each picking up the leather straps at a slow pace as they follow instructions. Connie speeds up so he can be finished quicker, within minutes he's done strapping her ankles firmly down and then excuses himself from the scene, feeling queasy about the whole thing. "I-I'll see you guys later. I need to go lie down."

Sasha watches on with a frown, this really is an awkward situation but she knows they're doing it to keep everyone safe, Annie included. Mikasa's expression is blank as well, which concerns her. Hanji looks in their element at least, which is just as discerning but completely normal at the same time. This thought makes her sigh internally, 'Sometimes I wonder why I'm attracted to this crazy person, hehe.' Her cheeks grow warm as she gets lost in her own thoughts about her relationship with Hanji.

'Just one more,' Mikasa thinks as she reaches for another strap. She tosses one side over the bed then bends down to retrieve it and pull it under back towards herself so that it wraps around Annie and the bed. She makes sure it's resting over Annie's chest just below her breasts before tightening and fastening it. She does her best to keep her mind quiet during this whole process, just wanting it to be over so she can rest. Hanji finishes at the same time, adding a fabric gag last and then they give each strap a firm tug to make sure they're to their standards. They give a nod and gather any unused straps and fabric before turning to face the others.

"Everything looks good and secure. If she wakes up she won't be going anywhere anytime soon and she shouldn't be able to injure herself this way. Still, stay vigilant and keep a close eye on her. If she wakes up and you're alone, I'll leave judgment up to you Mikasa about what to do with her. Still, do try to keep her calm and not kill her, if possible." Hanji stretches as they head for the door. "I'm going to head back to town, I'll have more experienced recruits sent out first thing in the morning."

"Oh! The sweet bread!" Sasha shouts as she remembers about the bread that she'd left by the door. She runs out and grabs the small satchel, pulling a hand sized roll out and handing it to Mikasa. "I promised you one right." She grins as she takes it, holding it up to her nose to smell it. "Smells good doesn't it?"

"Yes it does. Thank you Sasha, although I don't have much of an appetite this late, I promise I'll eat it later."

"It is pretty late now isn't it." Sasha frowns, realizing that it's probably almost dawn already. She briefly turns her gaze to the sleeping woman then back to Mikasa. "I know I said it earlier, but please stay safe. I'll come back as soon as I can." She gives her friend a hug before following after Hanji who has been waiting for her just outside the door. Mikasa can hear their voices echoing as they make their leave, a quiet laugh escaping her. "Ah, Hanji I said don't touch me until you wash your hands! D-don't kiss me either, gosh!..." Hanji's laugh sounds out as both their voices fade away.

"Those two make an odd couple, but they get along really well so I guess it works for them, heh." Mikasa thinks out loud as she's left alone again, well, alone with the sleeping form of Annie's. Still holding onto the sweet bread she glances back at the blonde. Now that she can have a moment of peace she takes in the sad sight of the bound and gagged woman. 'This really is the best option for now, until we know how she'll act when awake. Doesn't make it any easier to look at her like this though.'

She kneels down next to the bed, watching her restful face. Her attention draws to the cluster of stray hair that's been awkwardly across her face this whole time. She sighs, finally giving in and brushing her slightly calloused fingers across the soft skin of Annie's face, pushing the hair into a more natural position. Her hand lingers there for a brief moment, barely touching her cheek before pulling away. 'Why am I being so gentle with her? She doesn't deserve anything like that.' She sighs as she leaves the cell, coming back moments later with the chair in her arms. She locks herself inside the cell and places the chair a few feet away from the bed before plopping down onto it. 'I'm not only losing my edge, I've become soft too. Damn it.'

Mikasa stays this way for a few hours, trying her best to stay awake and alert, but eventually sleep claims her.

* * *

A/N: Just a quick note. I know nothing about binding people, or how it's done properly, and to be honest I didn't want to go dive into it and go looking that kind of stuff up. I did try to add a bit more depth to the other characters that were present for the events so that they weren't just static. That's certainly a weak point for me as I tend to tunnel vision into the main characters and the rest are just, there, awkwardly, haha. That aside, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I made it a bit longer than the last, and the next is already in-progress! Please look forward to it, and don't forget to let me know what you think. :)


	3. Playing Pretend

Chapter 3

A/N: This chapter took a bit longer to get out than I meant to, busy days. Also I realized that I was about to add a lot of inconsistencies in this chapter that I didn't want so I had to rewrite part of it. :| Not much else to note, but I did want to say 'Thank you' to those that are following along thus far. :) Sorry if the pace is a bit slow right now but I promise things will become more focused on the development between Mikasa/Annie within the next few chapters. Please enjoy!

* * *

Playing Pretend

Three uneventful days have passed since Annie emerged from her crystal and has shown no signs of waking up. Aside from Hanji stopping by to check her vitals once again, and the routine check-ins from the recruits stationed there, Mikasa has spent most of those days alone with her.

It's late evening and Mikasa is finishing her daily exercise routine, dabbing a towel across her face and neck before sitting down on the chair next to Annie's bed. She takes a moment to wind down, steadying her breath. She's not expecting any visitors tonight and decides not to put her gear back on for now, it's close enough within reach should she need it. She stays there relaxing for a while before finally opening her dark eyes and gazing down at Annie, studying the now familiar sight of her bound to the bed.

"What's it like being tied down like that, I wonder. It can't feel pleasant, unless you're into that sort of thing I guess." She doesn't know why she's talking to herself, Annie certainly won't be holding a conversation with her, but she figures why not since there's no one to hear her and she's bored. She continues on while watching her sleeping face.

"I was thinking about something earlier, something that I vaguely remember. I saw you when we were just kids all those years ago. It was after we had to retreat to Trost district. I had been arguing with Eren because he was being a stubborn brat and not eating. I remember looking at the line of people waiting for their share of food, that's where I saw you the first time. Of course I didn't know you at all, you were just another unfortunate child caught up in that mess along with everyone else." She leans back, getting a little more comfortable before continuing.

"To think that it was a bunch of kids that just broke down the walls, it's almost like some sick joke. It's appalling that someone would send children in to do something like that. To kill so many innocent people without provocation. Of course, you didn't reveal your role until long after that, not until we were out there trying to take back Wall Maria the first time. Slaughtering so many in the process, just to try and kidnap Eren." She sighs in frustration, leaning her head back and closing her eyes.

"We still don't understand why. What was your motivation, Annie? Was it something personal? Or just simply following a command, following orders from your superior. And even if that were the case what was their goal? It's so frustrating to think about, because we know we'll never get an answer, not unless you tell us, Annie. So please, wake up soon and just talk to us." She pauses a moment regathering her thoughts, thinking how silly she feels talking like this, and yet she is compelled to continue.

"I'll be the first to admit that I hate your guts, everyone does, and I'm sure even you can understand why. But at the same time I want to understand you, I want to know why, I want to know the motivation, I want to know if you did it willingly or just because it seemed like your only way out. I'd certainly like to believe that you did it, not because of the desire to, but because of some obligation that you were forced into. I think we deserve knowing that much after all we've gone through, after all we've lost." It felt good to get that off her chest, even if it all fell on deaf ears. She sits in silence again for a while, reeling her thoughts back into her head.

A small sound reaches her ears indiscernible at first and Mikasa opens her eyes only to narrow them at Annie. Her body becomes tense when she sees that Annie's lips are moving slightly around the fabric gag in her mouth, mumbling gibberish that she can't make out. 'Sleep talking?' She leans a little closer trying to make sense of any of it, but with the gag in place even if she were awake it would be difficult for her to speak. She watches on as the blonde's face contorts to that of pain, or fear perhaps, subconsciously tugging at her restraints. 'Must be having a nightmare.'

Annie continues like this for a few minutes, struggling and mumbling until finally she goes limp again, her face relaxing. Mikasa is startled when a few tears slide down her cheeks. She feels a touch of sympathy at the sight. Hesitantly she leans closer and gently wipes the tears away with her sleeve.

"Annie?" Silence is all that greets her, and a few more tears leaking from the woman's eyes. She feels the urge to comfort her even though she knows there's no reason to. She scoots her chair closer anyway, giving in to this sympathetic urge that has taken root and holds one of Annie's mitted hands in her own. The fabric isn't too rough or thick so she can feel the warmth of her hand seeping through. Mikasa isn't aware of how long she sits like this, but eventually she nods off.

Not long after she falls asleep eyelids flicker and ice blue eyes begin to open. So very slowly they open, squinting back from the unnatural light that filters in from the glowing rocks. Annie's vision is blurry as she just lays there, her brain having a hard time processing where she is, how and why. Her hazy gaze is drawn to the side at the sound of someone breathing right next to her. She can't make out the face right away so she continues to watch it, blinking several times until her vision clears enough. The woman's head is drooping a bit, medium length raven hair falling around and framing her exotic face. She then feels the warmth around her hand but is too tired to try and move her head further to inspect the reason why she can't move it at that moment. Minutes tic by, her eyes never leaving the beautiful face beside her before a name finally starts to come to mind. 'Mi-kasa?'

She feels so weak, confused, lost. She doesn't pull at any of the straps holding her body in place as memories begin to trickle back. The walls crumbling, titans everywhere, her father, Reiner, Bertholdt, their titan forms, and her own. Memories about being trained by her father, and her time in the training corp, the friends she made along the way, few and temporary as they may have been. Then Eren crosses her mind and his titan form, him chasing her down with such ferocity, then the feeling of fear, the overwhelming sense of desperation just to survive, to escape. Her eyes widen as realization settles in. 'He didn't kill me. I don't remember anything after he bit down on my titan's neck. I thought for sure I died. Where am I now then?' She frantically looks around the room as much as she is able, taking in the stone walls, glancing over her restraints and then settling back on Mikasa's sleeping face.

'So I've been captured then and they're holding me prisoner. If Mikasa is here then...' She cringes as a stabbing pain shoots through her skull, a headache settling in. 'Damn it, why can't I remember after that? How long have I been out for?' She reels in her thoughts, calming down as she studies the face next to her. 'Mikasa looks, different somehow. Like she's matured. I can't have been out too long, right? Surely no more than a few days.' She relaxes her head closing her eyes as she tries to sort through her memories.

'Was someone talking to me before now? It felt like a dream, the voice was soft and feminine. I remember there being a lot of questions, but I don't remember what they were about. Maybe Mikasa talks in her sleep.' She opens her eyes once more, watching Mikasa as she sleeps. 'If she's supposed to be guarding me she sure has become a lot more slack than she used to be, just sleeping there like that. Heh, then again I'd probably do the same in that situation, how boring to watch someone sleeping, and for who knows how long.'

She takes a moment to give further inspection to the straps binding her body. 'Whoever did this, they did a good job.' There is very little wiggle room, only her head has some freedom to move around. The gag in her mouth is soggy and tastes stale, drool obviously has run down her face because of it, a disgusting and helpless state to be in. 'They even went so far as to put my hands into mitts so I can't even scratch myself. I'm willing to bet Hanji had a hand in this, that mad scientist always had a good eye for detail and restraining was nothing new to them.' She continues to look for a weak point in the bindings, slow firm tugs testing their resistance while making sure not to make any sounds that could alert Mikasa. She notices how the strap holding her left arm above her head yields a bit more than the others, but not nearly enough to really help her in any way.

'I'll have to play my cards right and make sure they think I'm still asleep while I figure out a way to get out of here. I wonder if Reiner and Bert are looking for me. I doubt they would've exposed themselves just for my sake. Ugh this sucks. It doesn't help that I'm really thirsty, and hungry.' She tries to distract herself, pulling away from thoughts of food and instead focusing on the warm hand still holding her mitted one.

'Why is she holding my hand anyway? Of course it wouldn't be to comfort me at all. I don't deserve such a gesture. To feel for movement, or she just grabbed it in her sleep, dreaming about cutting my fingers off again or something weird like that.'

Her thoughts come to a stop when she catches the sound of footsteps approaching the door. Quickly she closes her eyes and starts to relax, slowing her breathing and pulse. She's always been good at pretending to be asleep so this will be no challenge, she hopes. With what little mobility her hand has in its mitt she gives Mikasa's a weak squeeze. It's enough to get the desired affect as Mikasa jolts awake, looking around confused for a split second then looking down at her hand and then to Annie's face.

'I must of been dreaming. For a second I thought she was awake.' Not a moment later she too caught the sound of footsteps approaching the door, a knock sounding out followed by Hanji's voice. Mikasa hides her embarrassment for having fallen asleep for who knows how long. Hanji unlocks the door with a spare key letting themselves in with Erwin and Armin in tow, Mikasa stands to greet them. 'What's Armin doing here?'

"Good morning Mikasa. We've been informed about the events that took place a few nights ago. I take it nothing has changed since then." Erwin is the first to speak as the trio approach her, coming to a stop next to her.

"No, nothing at all." As Mikasa responds to him Hanji silently makes their way over to start doing what they do to take vitals and checking for any conscious responses.

"She really did come out." Armin speaks softly as he gazes over Annie, squinting as he analyzes every little detail about the woman. A shiver runs up his spine as a strong sense of caution forces him to reanalyze every aspect of her unconscious form. An inkling of suspicion rooting into his mind. 'Is she...'

"Armin," the firm tone from Erwin snaps the young man from his train of thought. "I need you to take an order back to town. I want some artillery set up around the perimeter of this place, just a handful of spare cannons should be doable. If you can relay that message for me, and make sure they know it is urgent."

"Are you sure that isn't a bit excessive sir?"

"Given what happened the last time she was up and about, no I don't think it is. We should take every precaution to make sure we don't suffer another outburst like before. We've been making great strides against the titans for a while now, this girl can not be allowed to ruin what we've all been working so hard to achieve." The older man sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose with his only hand. "Of course I'd like to avoid any conflicts with her should she cooperate, but we need everyone ready in the case she resists, or worse manages to shift."

'You and your damn cannons Erwin, and what's this about me cooperating? Is that really even an option at this point?' Annie remains motionless and non-expressive as she listens on.

The weight in the room feels heavier than it did previously, Mikasa notes. 'Cannons, great. They really will kill you Annie, please don't be stupid.' She turns her attention back to Erwin, having heard her name called out. "Yes?"

"I'm going to relieve you for the remainder of the day."

"But Sir, I'm to remain here until tomorrow evening, it's my duty to.."

"Mikasa, I'm not asking. Go take the rest of the day and tomorrow as well to recover and get well rested. I need you in top form when you are here. I may be missing an arm but I'm fully capable of holding things down here while you are gone. So please, go eat a warm meal and rest."

How could she refuse? She can't, of course she can't. He is her superior after all, and an order is an order even if every fiber of her being wants her to stay there until Annie wakes. But there is no telling how long that might be. "Sir, I'll head out right away then. I'll return the day after tomorrow. Thank you." She offers a salute and with one last long glance at Annie she makes her way out.

Internally Annie is cursing her luck, she feels a sadness as she listens to Mikasa's fading footsteps. Now she is alone in the cell with Erwin, Armin and Hanji who has been taking her vitals. 'Just focus on staying calm, they'll never figure it out.'

"Hmm, all vitals are normal, absolutely no changes from last time I checked." Hanji confirms that Annie is still unconscious, to their knowledge anyway.

Annie would grin if she could at how easily they are fooled by her act. The two higher ups converse quietly amongst themselves a short distance away, about what, Annie doesn't know and quite frankly she doesn't care. She gets the feeling that she is being closely watched by Armin though. He hasn't said anything else, and she didn't hear him leave, so he must definitely be watching her. 'Damn that kid, if anyone could figure me out it would be him. He's already done it once before, calling me out as the female titan. Where would I be now had I of just gone along with them back then? Would I still be in the Military police like nothing happened enjoying my peaceful life?'

She has to drive those thoughts from her mind for now, as they could invoke too many emotions and make her lose her composure. Her hearing refocuses on the others when she hears footsteps fading away, 'Hanji is leaving now it seems. Good, I'm tired of their incessant prodding. That just leaves Erwin and Armin. I almost wish they just left Mikasa here, at least her voice isn't annoying like these guys. She did look kind of bad off though with those bags under her eyes.'

"What do you think Armin? About this situation." Annie can hear Erwin as he sits down roughly on the chair next to her while speaking to the boy.

"I think Hanji is correct, Annie is definitely not aware right now."

"I feel the same way. I doubt anyone can pretend and get past Hanji just like that. Of course, we don't know what kind of training Annie may have undergone before joining the regiment. I checked out what files we have on her, and tried to do some extra digging a while ago. There isn't much to work off of, other than she was raised in some isolated village and trained by her father, along with Reiner and Bertholdt. Her father is an unknown element and is assumed dead. Meaning, those two broke the first walls and then all three fled inside then hid among the refugees of Trost." Erwin shifts in the chair while Armin makes a humming sound.

"Assuming her father is dead is probably correct, or perhaps..."

"What is it?"

"I was just thinking of a theory. It may be a bit far fetched though."

"Please share."

"Well I was thinking about her father. What if he did something similar with Annie as Eren's did with him?"

"You mean to imply her father may have been a former titan that regained humanity and held the shifter ability. Then to perhaps protect his daughter injected her with shifter fluids and allowed her to eat him? That certainly is an out there theory, but considering this is what happened to Eren it makes it a believable thought."

"That is the general idea that I have, but it could be entirely wrong of course. We won't know until she wakes up, if she decides to talk with us that is. Annie is stubborn, but if I know anything about her it's that she cares most about her own life. She may be willing to do anything if it means she can survive."

Annie listens closely to their conversation as they continue on and on about theories of whys and hows, she would laugh at them if only she could. 'Fools, keep guessing, because so far you're way off.'

"However," Annie is pulled from her thoughts as Armin continues. "I'm not so sure how willing she will be once she finds out about them."

"By them, you're referring to her comrades correct?" Armin nods solemnly in response, humming in his throat. "Right, it's hard to judge just how close they really were. When you engaged Bertholdt that last time trying to talk him out of it. I believe you said he held no emotional response upon telling him that Annie was being tortured endlessly, and that he didn't care what happened to her because she already failed in her mission." Annie can feel her blood running cold as her heart nearly stops, she doesn't like where this conversation is heading, but continues to maintain control over any external signs.

"Reiner, Bertholdt, that beast titan, I don't remember us catching his name, and all of those titans that closely followed his command. That is not a battle I wish to repeat. It is unfortunate that they could not be reasoned with, surely they could have become powerful allies but instead they chose the destruction of humanity. I'm doubtful we'll ever truly understand what they were trying to achieve." Erwin's voice is filled with many unasked questions.

"I truly wanted Bertholdt at least to back down, Reiner too if possible. I still can't shake the fact that they're dead now. Remembering our times together when we were just trainees, they weren't only allies, but they were almost like brothers." Armin sighs loudly, shifting in place.

'Wait, hold on, what did he just say?' Annie is in disbelief as their words begin to sink in more and more. 'They're dead? All of them? How is that even possible...' Her thoughts are in turmoil while trying to piece all of this together as the two continue speaking.

"It came down to them or us, Armin. That was four years ago, try not to let it continue to bother you like that. Remember them for their good qualities and let them rest, along with all the other tragedies that were suffered from their deeds. These past four years have been very forgiving for us at least, we have Eren's dedication and his hardening ability to thank for most of that." There is a short pause between them.

Annie feels numb by this point, her mind is a hazed blur as she continues to repeat the same thought over and over. 'They're dead... They're really dead then? Could they possibly just be saying these things to get a reaction out of me? I wouldn't put it past them, but, if they are telling the truth then... What do I do now? I have no alternative plan, failing wasn't supposed to be an option with those guys. I've already failed twice, this is all wrong.'

"I think I will excuse myself now Erwin, if that's okay. I still need to relay your order about the cannons."

"Yes that's fine Armin, please do that for me, and if you could keep an eye on Mikasa for me as well. Make sure she actually rests up, and get her outside if you can, that girl needs more sun. I'll handle things here until she returns in two days."

"I'll do what I can Sir." Armin salutes him before making his leave. The room grows silent once he's gone. Unlike Mikasa, Erwin does not talk to himself, or to Annie's 'unconscious' form. He simply sits there with a stern expression, lost to his own world of thoughts as he keeps his eyes on her.

Annie however is completely gone, still in disbelief at all she's heard. Her head begins to pound again, her headache returning as the information proves far too much for her to handle in her current state. All this fighting off her emotions when all she wants to do is to be able to curl up, or wake up from this nightmare. Eventually, her mind exhausting itself with the doubt and confusion, she drifts into a nightmare filled sleep.

* * *

A/N: Again I'm sorry this one took so long, and it's short. Hopefully I'll have the next one out quicker. Until then! :)


	4. Restless

Chapter 4

A/N: Another chapter that took me a while to get out, sorry~ But I promise to try my best to keep them coming at least twice a month, and also this chapter will start flexing that 'M' rating with some steamy stuff *ohohoho* I apologize in advance if parts of this one come off as super boring. So there's that, and I hope you all enjoy. :)

*Also, the _'Italics'_ stuff is flashback.

* * *

Restless

At full speed Mikasa made it back to town in no time and quickly crashed into her bed, deciding against eating until she wakes up. Which doesn't happen until mid-afternoon, sleeping a good 12 hours. She sits on her bed still trying to wake herself with her eyes half open, she nearly falls over more than a few times. It takes an hour to finally get herself moving and goes about her usual exercises and then indulges in some hygiene, one thing she doesn't have the luxury of on guard duty as she doesn't have access to a decent bathroom with a tub.

Thankful to be rid of any lingering funk and fully awake and ready for the day she stands next to the door, thinking of what she should do with this extra free time she's been granted. 'Half of the day is already gone, I wonder what everyone is up to right now.' Without wasting another minute she exits her one room apartment and sets out to find any of her friends.

"Mikasa~! Over here!" It doesn't take long before Mikasa is found by Sasha with an amused Hanji standing next to her, holding onto the hand that isn't flailing around in the air to grab her attention. Instead of yelling back down the street Mikasa walks over to them with her eyebrows raised.

"Hello Sasha, Hanji." She offers a courteous nod to them both.

"You're back in town early aren't you? Wasn't expecting to see you until tomorrow."

"Erwin insisted I come back. I'm surprised Hanji didn't tell you." She looks pointedly to the taller brunette, to which Hanji chuckles.

"I was pretty tired when I got back, and Sasha was already asleep. Slipped my mind, and this way is better, I get to see that look of happy surprise on her face." To this Sasha releases their hand and crosses her arms staring at Hanji.

"Don't make it sound like you don't ever see me happy geez."

"I wasn't trying to imply that I don't, I just like seeing your face all lit up." Sasha's cheeks flare a bright pink at how openly flirty Hanji is being right now and lightly shoves them in exasperation.

"What am I going to do with you Hanji?! Stop embarrassing me in front of Mikasa, and besides she doesn't want to see us flirting, right Mikasa?" She looks expectantly to her, silently asking her to say yes. Mikasa betrays her plea with a shrug of her shoulders.

"It doesn't bother me honestly. After sitting alone in a dungeon for days at a time it's actually refreshing to see other people interacting in a normal manner." Sasha hunches over in defeat providing Hanji the perfect opportunity to give her a tap on her ass. This sends the girl into a fit of playfully punching them in the arm.

"Oh stop it!" She sighs and recomposes herself. "So anyway! Mikasa, how long are you going to be in town?" Brown eyes look to her with a hopeful glint.

"I'll be leaving again the day after tomorrow, so not very long. What are you two doing the rest of today?" She can see the disappointment on Sasha's face and how she tries to hide it. 'Sorry Sasha, now more than ever I need to be out there.'

"We're finishing up some grocery shopping then heading back to our place. Sasha said she'd make dinner tonight. Want to join us?" Hanji asks with a wide grin.

"Are you sure I won't be imposing?" This makes Hanji laugh.

"Not at all! We rarely have guests over, it'll be nice. I'm sure Sasha won't mind making extra food too."

"Of course I don't mind, please join us Mikasa. I'm making steak and potatoes!" Hanji and Sasha now both stare at her with matching grins while waiting for her to agree. She nods to them with a small smile.

"Alright then lead the way. It's been a while since I got to enjoy a hot home cooked meal." With a lot of excitement Sasha hooks one arm through Mikasa's and grabs Hanji's hand with the other, leading them both in the direction of the nearest grocer stall.

Throughout the whole shopping experience Sasha and Hanji chat endlessly, Mikasa chiming in when appropriate. Her mind however is not in the moment, and instead she keeps thinking about Annie. 'Stop worrying about it, if she wakes up they'll send word right away. I need to make the most of this free time and enjoy it.'

* * *

"And here we are, home sweet home" Hanji calls out as they open the door to their apartment. "It's not much, but it's been enough ever since we moved in together at least. I hope you don't mind but I do need to finish looking over some things, it shouldn't take long." They continue further in to an area with a desk that has papers thrown all over it.

"Hanji that's rude, can't it wait until after dinner at least?" There's no real bite to Sasha's complaint, but still she tries to persuade the workaholic to not work right now, Hanji however shakes their head.

"Best if I just get it out of the way while you cook. I promise it won't take but a few minutes, so if you two will excuse me." Hanji sits down at their desk on the far end of the apartment and immediately sets about reading through various reports. Sasha just sighs and walks into the small kitchenette setting the bags of groceries down on the counter.

"Sorry Mikasa, it's hard to keep Hanji from their work. Go ahead and make yourself at home wherever you'd like and I'll get dinner started. If you need anything just let me know okay."

"Really it's fine Sasha, don't worry about me. I don't mind Hanji working at all, just being in the company of others is good enough." She gives Sasha a reassuring smile then points to the groceries. "Are you sure I can't help with that?"

"Nope, you sit your butt down somewhere and I'll get this going. I'll make the best steak and potatoes you've ever had!" With that Sasha rolls up her sleeves and gets to work, leaving Mikasa with time to look over the small living space a little more closely.

It isn't much larger than her own, with the addition of an office space for Hanji and a small kitchenette and dining area. Everyone has had to adjust to similar living situations as there just isn't enough space for everyone to have their own house in this district. With the danger level and caution over Annie a lot of the survey corp has been stationed within Stohess for these four years. At first there were a lot of conflicts between them and the civilians already living there, but eventually things calmed down. Of course no one expected it would take nearly this long for things to change.

She takes a seat at the dining table relaxing in the comfortable atmosphere, her mind begins to drift back to Annie. 'I can't help but wonder how things are out there. I don't know why I care so much about being there, watching her. Am I really that eager to be the first one to cut her down if she lashes out? I really don't feel that way though. So why then?' Her eyes drift closed and she crosses her arms, the sound of steak sizzling on a hot skillet reaching her ears. She can feel her face grow warm as a few memories flash through her mind, the same memories she fought off just a few days ago.

* * *

 _`It's late, the sun set hours ago and most are sleeping, but not those two, not when Annie voiced a private challenge to her just hours previously. Now here they are in a nearby forest locked in a fierce sparring match, both coated in a sheen of sweat from the prolonged match. Annie swings her fist at Mikasa's face intent on landing a hit that would leave a normal person unconscious. She only manages to graze the tips of raven hair as she narrowly avoids it. Not discouraged Annie quickly follows through with her signature kick, fueled by rage and her dislike for this girl, this beast of a human, her rival. Every ounce of her being goes into the kick and Mikasa is left with no time to dodge. In fact she doesn't try to, instead she braces her arms up and blocks knowing that it is going to leave a nasty bruise. The impact, while not quite what the blonde wants, has enough power to send her target sliding back several feet. While Annie would have preferred the kick to have connected with her skull, it still provides her with an opportunity as Mikasa is briefly stunned, taking more than a moment to recover her stance._

 _Before she has time to fully recover Annie tackles the taller girl full on, making them both fall to the grassy ground with a heavy thud. Their spar then turns into a wrestling match with Annie trying to pin her down. Mikasa's longer limbs gives her more of an advantage though and she manages to push Annie up just far enough to squeeze her legs between them before hoisting the smaller girl up and then kicking her off. A split second later and Annie is splayed out on her stomach with Mikasa sitting firmly on her rear, her arms pinned down by a fierce grip on her wrists. She struggles and growls in frustration, damning her small stature while trying to turn this situation in her favor._

 _Even though it's dark and the trees around them make it even darker, both of their eyes are well adjusted making it easier to see each other. Mikasa sits there pressing her full weight down and watches Annie squirm as she tries to find a way out from beneath her. "Give up yet, Annie?" She says in short breaths, winded by all of the physical exertion, her strength however is unwavering. Annie may be small, fast and well educated in her technique, but when it comes to brute strength Mikasa is by far superior._

 _The question seems to only make the blonde's temper flare even more as her resistance becomes more aggressive. In kind Mikasa presses down harder, they continue this struggle for several minutes before finally Annie yields. Her body grows limp when she accepts defeat, her labored breaths brushing over the grass, ice blue eyes stare off unfocused and lost in the darkness ahead._

 _The weight of her rivals body finally lifts off of her and takes a few steps away. "So, what was the point of this? What are you trying to prove by challenging me?" No response is offered to the questions, the only thing Annie does is sit up while continuing to gaze off in the distance. "Really? You call me out here in the middle of the night to challenge me, and when you lose you just sit there and pout?" Mikasa gives a frustrated sigh before turning around, walking away from the silent trainee. "Don't waste my time like this again," is the last thing she says intent on returning to the barracks to get as much rest as she can before the next day of training._

 _Annie however is not finished just yet and within an instant she's tackling Mikasa once again to the ground. This time she doesn't make the mistake of letting her longer limbs remain free as she wraps her whole body around Mikasa, pinning her arms to her side. Mikasa growls and strains against the firm grip. "Damnit Annie! What the hell?!" She coughs as the wind is squeezed out of her. "I didn't take you as the sore loser type." Annie continues to suppress her, refusing to let go for a long while._

 _After a while something wet falls on Mikasa's neck, thinking it's about to rain she looks up to the sky but there's not a cloud in sight. She then feels Annie shivering slightly above her, another drop of water runs down her neck. "Annie, are you..." The droplets continue to fall against her neck and she can feel the blonde's grip start to loosen, she decides not to force her off just yet. "You're really confusing me now, why are you crying? I know it's not because of those hits I landed." She's not surprised when there is no response and finally sits up with Annie's arms and legs still wrapped around her, forcing the smaller girl to sit on her lap. She decides not to say anything else for the moment and let's the girl cry silently on her shoulder._

 _She's not sure how much time passes like this, but eventually the tears stop and Annie's arms let their grip go freeing up her own. She doesn't look like she plans on getting off of her lap anytime soon though. "Annie, look at me." She doesn't, instead her head remains downcast along with her eyes, however, Mikasa's patience has run out. She reaches up slowly until her knuckle gently presses up against Annie's chin pushing it up, forcing her to look up at her. She looks like she's falling asleep with her eyes almost closed. "Annie?" she tries once more to get the dazed girls attention._

 _This time she gets a reaction as her eyes slide back open, ice blue stare back at her dark gray. She almost regrets calling her attention as now she feels locked in place by those tear stained eyes. Their faces are only a few inches apart but neither seem to take notice, and if they did neither takes action to move away. The look of confusion is mirrored on both of their faces. Annie is the one that breaks the moment by leaning closer with her eyes focusing on Mikasa's lips, their breaths mingling in the slightly chilly air. Agonizingly slowly their lips press against each others, the gap between them is now gone as she presses fully against her. The action takes a moment to register with Mikasa and her eyes slowly widen in realization at what's going on. 'She's kissing me... Why? Why am I not pulling away? Is she attracted to me, or is this just part of her being angry still?'_

 _Her thoughts shut down when she feels Annie's wet tongue gently brush over lips, she surprises herself when she opens her mouth letting it in. A vivid blush paints both their cheeks as inexperienced tongues roll around and slide against the others. 'Why am I enjoying this? I should be shoving her away and leaving now.' Mikasa's hands quiver as she grips at the sides of Annie's hoodie while hers are grasping at her shoulders. 'I'm straight, right? I like guys, don't I? This is... I've never really sat down and thought about it. What if I am attracted to girls? But... this is Annie, so why...'_

 _Another new sensation stops her thoughts as Annie starts to lightly nibble on her lower lip, alternating from light nibbles to sucking against the flesh and again sliding her tongue back into Mikasa's mouth. Both of their breaths coming out as quick gasps and silent groans, the heat between them rising. The shorter girl presses her whole body in closer, raising herself up on her knees to adjust for the height difference making it more comfortable for them both and allowing her to deepen the kiss even further, their clothed breasts now pressing against the others._

 _Annie brings one of her hands down to press against Mikasa's covered abs, tracing the well defined contours through the fabric. Her hand starts to move higher tugging the shirt up with it, but just before she reaches Mikasa's chest her wrist is grasped to stop her. The sudden action seems to snap Annie back to reality, her eyes widen and she pulls away, quickly crawling off of her lap and facing away. They both sit there in silence not facing the other as they recover their breaths. Finally Annie stands and without looking back she says under her breath, "Sorry," before running off deeper into the forest, leaving a very confused Mikasa to watch as she vanishes into the darkness. Before she has time to call after her or react she hears someone call her name._

" _Mikasa."_

" _Huh? Who's that?" She glances around for the owner of the sudden voice calling her name. The world around her starts to shake and her name is called out again.'_

* * *

"Mi-ka-sa, wake up, dinner's ready" Sasha calls out again as she lightly shakes Mikasa's shoulder. She wakes up startled for a moment as her mind comes back to the present.

"I fell asleep? I'm sorry" she says while she rubs her eyes and forces the dream from her mind. 'If only that were just a dream.'

"I blame Hanji for being boring and doing work when we have a guest."

"If blaming me makes you feel better hon." Hanji walks to the table with plates of steaming food, setting them down.

"It does, but now let's eat! I hope you like it Mikasa." She looks down at the savory meal before her, the scent is enough to wake her up fully.

"It looks and smells amazing Sasha. Thank you for the meal."

The meal is enjoyed in silence, Mikasa savors every bite of mouth watering steak. After they're all finished Hanji is yawning and Mikasa decides that she's stayed long enough.

"Thanks again for dinner Sasha, it really was great."

"Think nothing of it. You know all these years and this is the first time we've really had time like this, you always keep to yourself when you're in town."

"I didn't even realize to be honest, every day just faded into the next and before I knew it four years went by."

"Time has flown by huh. Oh hey so what are you doing tomorrow?"

"I was thinking of finding Eren, maybe."

"Hmm, how about I round up who I can and we can all hang out? Eren too." Mikasa thinks the idea over for a moment before nodding.

"That sounds good actually."

"Alright! I'll come by your place after I see who's free okay." The grin on Sasha's face is contagious as Mikasa can't help but smile back.

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow then." She looks past Sasha at Hanji who is retreating to bed. "Thanks again for inviting me over Hanji."

"Anytime!" They call out as she leaves.

The walk back to her own apartment is uneventful and she wastes little time turning in for the night. Keeping all thoughts of Annie from her mind and letting the day end on a good note.

* * *

The next morning Mikasa is just finishing getting her clothes on when there's a knock on her door. "Who is it?" she calls out while fastening the last buckle around her thigh.

"It's Sasha." Mikasa walks to the door and opens it for the grinning woman. "Ready for some fun today? I managed to find not only Eren, but Armin, Jean, Connie, and an extra. They're all waiting outside the building. Oh, and bring your maneuver gear." Mikasa raises an eyebrow.

"An extra? What do you mean by that?"

"Um, well you remember that one girl, Hitch? She's in the military police. I bumped into her and she was asking about Annie and stuff, said they had to share a room before all that stuff happened. She said she wants to give something to you, to give to Annie, I'm not sure what though, she wouldn't say. She's kind of weird, but she was insistent to see you."

"The name vaguely rings a bell, but okay. Is she here right now?" Sasha nods and motions for someone out in the hallway. A moment later Hitch comes into view with a small satchel in her hands.

"So I'll leave you two here, I'll be outside with the others so come join us when you're finished here Mikasa." Sasha leaves them alone and Hitch hesitates a moment before introducing herself.

"We've never really been introduced but I'm Hitch, and as Sasha said I was Annie's roommate in the military police."

"I'm Mikasa. So what is it that you want me to get to Annie?" she glances down at the satchel in her hands.

"Well, more like I'm trying to get rid of her junk that's been taking up space. I'm still stationed within Sina but happened to be here today and thought I'd get this out of the way while I'm here. It's mostly just a few pieces of clothing, she really didn't have much with her, but she did have this thing." As she says that she pulls a small brown teddy bear from the satchel and holds it up. It's old, with stitches poking out of it and a few stains, but otherwise well taken care of.

Mikasa studies it for a moment, wondering why someone like Annie would own such a thing. "I see, there shouldn't be a problem with me returning the items to her."

Hitch stuffs the bear back into the satchel and hands it over to her. "Not that I care what happens to her junk or anything, or to her for that matter. I'm just tired of seeing it. That's all the business that I had here though, I have other things to take care of so I'll be on my way."

She thinks about inviting Hitch to hang out with them, but decides it's probably better off not doing so, she seems uninterested in being there anyway. "I'll make sure she gets them at least." Hitch leaves without another word and Mikasa holds up the satchel, it's not heavy at all. She sets it down on her bed before leaving to meet up with the others, she's kept them waiting long enough.

"Finally, what took you so long?" Jean doesn't waste time to complain as soon as she walks out of the building. Everyone else sighs collectively.

"It's not like she took that long Jean, calm down. We finally get to hang out with everyone, don't be a drag man." Connie chimes in before waving to her. "Hello Mikasa, don't mind grumpy ass here."

"When doesn't Jean have a stick up his ass?" Everyone laughs at Eren's comment. "So, what did Hitch want?"

"She just wanted to get rid of what few things Annie owned that were left behind, clothes mostly."

"She wouldn't of owned much else." Armin chimes in and waves at Mikasa.

"So anyway! Let's do this!" Sasha gives out a cheer and motions for everyone to follow her.

"What are we doing anyway? Taking a leisurely stroll through town?" Connie follows behind her with his arms resting behind his head.

"Nope, it's a surprise, and it's also why I asked everyone to wear their maneuver gear."

They go by the stable and ride out of town, an air of confusion covering all but Sasha. The ride is short when they stop at a forest of giant trees.

"Uh Sasha, why did we come all the way out here? Just tell us already." Connie looks up at the tall trees looming nearby.

"Yea Sasha, what's all this for?" Eren stands nearby with his arms crossed looking irritated, Jean standing next to him with a similar expression, Mikasa is on his other side feeling just as confused.

"We're going to have some fun, that's what! Come on!" Sasha ignores the confused glances and runs into the forest, everyone else looks at each other before following after her. She pulls out the handles for her maneuver gear and presses the buttons sending out the wires before zipping off into the air. The others follow suit and engage their gear taking off after her.

Sasha is heard laughing loudly ahead of them leading them to who knows where. Until finally they reach a clearing and everyone comes to a halt, dangling in the air as they stare at what sits in the clearing before them. Connie bursts out laughing while the others gawk. "Titan dummies, really Sasha!?" She appears from the tree line and stops next to them.

"Yup! I thought this would be a fun activity for everyone, and since Mikasa hasn't gotten to fight titans in a long time. So, who's ready to take down some titans?!" She shouts out enthusiastically. Armin observes the set up, noticing other similar dummies within the trees.

"I'm surprised you were able to get this set up so quickly Sasha, impressive." She grins at Armin's comment.

"Well, I got Hanji to help out a bit. The dummies were actually already out here, they just haven't been needed yet." She laughs a bit before pointing at Mikasa. "Anyway, Mikasa gets to start." Mikasa stares at her still in disbelief, taking in the situation before finally offering a nod, deciding she might as well go along with it.

"Well, we're all out here so might as well." With that Mikasa readies her blades, feeling a sense of excitement that she hasn't felt in a long time. She swiftly approaches the giant dummy just like the ones from their trainee days, slicing a large chunk from the nape of its neck before vanishing within the forest. As soon she lands the first strike the others follow.

They go on like this until they're all exhausted, blades are dulled and all the dummies are destroyed. "It's good to see Mikasa hasn't lost her edge, out of everyone she still slices the deepest and got the most hits. I'll admit, this was a lot of fun" Armin says while standing next to his horse. "I'm going to head back to town though, I told Erwin I'd handle some things for him while he's away."

"I'll go ahead as well, I'm beat. Thanks for the crazy idea Sasha" Connie waves and follows Armin.

"Yea, it was interesting, I'm going back too, later." Jean leaves shortly after the other two, leaving Mikasa with Sasha and Eren.

"Interesting is one way to put it." Eren says as they watch the three ride off.

"Hehe, maybe I over did it? Everyone seemed to have fun at least, and after it's been so long since we all just did something fun together." Mikasa looks between Eren and Sasha before smiling slightly.

"Well it was certainly unexpected, but thanks Sasha, I at least enjoyed it." This makes Sasha giggle before she turns to look towards the setting sun.

"I'm glad you liked it at least. I didn't think we'd be out here so late though, I really wanted us all to have dinner together too." Sasha pouts a bit upon the realization that a group dinner won't be happening.

"It's fine, this was more than enough. Honestly I think I'm ready to just go back and relax a bit before I leave again." Eren looks at her with a serious expression.

"So you do go back out there tomorrow?" he asks.

"Yes, as soon as I'm ready in the morning I'll leave town." Mikasa stretches her sore muscles, some of which have not been used in a long time from the gear. "With luck Annie will actually wake up soon and then this whole thing will be over, one way or another. Then everything can be normal again." That's what she hopes anyways, part of her feels that, for herself at least, things won't go back to normal any time soon, and that thought bothers her immensely. Eren sighs and starts walking to his horse, Sasha and Mikasa following him.

"For better or worse huh, it still bothers me they won't let me help out more." He mounts the horse and stares off a moment while the girls do the same. "Whatever, let's head back to town before it gets dark. Levi's expecting me to cook tonight too." Eren groans at the thought of cooking.

"I didn't think you knew how to cook" Sasha pokes at his side and giggles. "And for someone nit picky like Levi too."

"You have no idea, and yes I can cook, I just prefer not to."

"Ah I see. Hanji is cooking tonight for us. Mikasa would you like to join us again?" Mikasa shakes her head.

"No thanks, I really am ready to just go home. I have something to eat there anyway." The last part is a lie as she has no food at her place, but she wants solitude now, even if that means going to bed on an empty stomach.

Sasha complains a bit on the ride back but her concerns are put down eventually, giving them a little time to chat normally. The three go their separate ways once they return their horses to the stable, Mikasa sighs in relief once she finally shuts the door inside her apartment. It doesn't take long for her to strip off her gear and clothing, throwing on a long shirt and then crawls into bed.

As she lays there trying to sleep her mind remains far too active. 'I'll be going back out there tomorrow. Today really reminded me just how isolated I've made myself. I haven't had nearly so much fun since... Well, I can't remember the last time. During trainee days maybe, on a few occasions. That was so long ago now, so much happened right after that. If Annie would just hurry and wake up I could go back to living the way I was before, everyone could. Annie...'

Several memories of the blonde flash through her mind, all from their days in training. Images of Annie glaring at Sasha when she would make rounds in the mess hall asking for any left overs. Annie looking utterly bored while dangling from her maneuver gear between two posts. Those piercing eyes that could bore holes into anyone who approached her. Her signature stance with her arms held up, and the flawless techniques she executed on people that were stupid enough to challenge her, or worse the unfortunate ones that got paired up with her. The very rare but entirely adorable smile she would display, although that smile was never directed at her, usually it was towards Reiner or Bertholdt and occasionally Eren. Annie sneaking out of hand-to-hand combat whenever she could, completely devoid of interest in the matter of sparring with her peers. 'Not that she needed more training, then again...'

Her thoughts go back to that night in the forest where they sparred, brawled rather. 'Had she of trained harder, maybe she could have won that night without relying on tricks.' She subconsciously reaches up and lightly runs a finger against her lips, recalling how the kiss felt. How those soft lips pressed so gently against her own with a need that she could not identify, she still can't figure out what drove Annie to do it, and while she hates to admit it, 'it felt... nice. Were things different, had she of not been a titan and a traitor, if she was just a normal girl, maybe things could have been different between us.'

She continues to lay there thinking of the things that could of happened had she of let Annie continue that night. If she had let her hand continue to travel up her stomach to her breasts. It's now that she realizes that her own hand is beneath her shirt doing just that, tracing circles over her abs while slowly working up. A shiver runs through her and she feels herself becoming warmer. 'Am I... fantasizing, about Annie?' She doesn't stop her hand at this thought, instead letting it continue its trek up until it brushes the bottom of one of her breasts causing her to arch her back just slightly before taking one of the small mounds into her hand.

She gasps softly from the contact, 'I haven't done this in so long. I don't remember being this sensitive there.' Her fantasy refuels itself as she gently squeezes her own breast, pressing and rubbing it before touching the nipple. She bites her lip to keep herself quiet as the sensation runs through her, she presses and rubs her legs together as well having felt a shock between them. She begins rolling and teasing her nipple, arching and pressing herself further into the touch. She keeps herself quiet, only silent groans escape her as her nipple hardens and becomes more sensitive.

Her other hand that had been tracing her lips now trails down her abs to the hem of her panties. She wastes little time and pushes past the border, stopping its path briefly to appreciate her recently trimmed pubes. Her hips jerk when she finally reaches down and brushes the tips of her fingers lightly over her slit. All the while she imagines that it's Annie doing these things to her, blonde hair lose and cascading down to tickle at her skin while above her, small nimble hands claiming her body. She gasps as her fingers spread her labia while her thumb gently brushes over her clit, her other hand squeezing her breast more firmly, arching further desperate for more contact.

She teases her entrance with her middle finger circling around it, gathering the slick fluids that have gathered there. Slowly she presses her finger inside the tight hole all the way up to her knuckle, leaving it still for just a moment. The thought of Annie's tongue pressing between her lips urges her on, 'Annie...' she begs silently in her mind before she begins moving her finger again, pulling it out and back in building momentum with every thrust. She adds another finger and moans softly as her entrance is stretched farther causing an ache that is soon replaced with pleasure from the increased friction. Her whole body is moving, meeting her thrusts, writhing as the pressure builds inside, jerking every time her palm moves against her clit. She curls her fingers up pressing them firmly against the front wall, quickly finding that one spot she knows will end this quickly and presses and strokes against it until she finally peaks. Her mind goes blank, all thoughts of Annie or anything leaving her for a moment before she comes back down, her body turning to jelly as she removes her fingers.

She weakly holds her hands in front of her face, staring at the sticky fluids before reaching over to her night stand wiping her hand clean on a towel that she left there. She rolls over on her side, breaths still shaky as she pulls the thin blanket over herself. She decides she isn't going to dwell on the fact that she just did that to the thoughts of her rival as her mind is finally tired.

She wakes up bright and early the next morning, all thoughts from the previous night are put out of mind as she exercises, bathes, eats a cheap meal and, making sure not to forget Annie's belongings, finally leaves town.

* * *

A/N: Phew! This was a beast of a chapter, some parts I don't like, others I do. I did my best to edit it all equally. But yay, finally some action, although it's just a small taste for now. I hope you all enjoyed this, sorry for my bad writing particularly when there are groups, I really do have a hard time when there's more than three people haha. Don't forget to leave comments if you'd like! I really do enjoy knowing what the readers think, good or bad. Until next time~ ;)


	5. Wake Me Up

Chapter 5

A/N: Many issues to round this one off but here it is.

* * *

Wake Me Up

"So Levi."

"Huh?" he looks to Erwin.

"I think we should go ahead and decide what happens next."

"I thought that was decided, why complicate things? If she refuses to cooperate we kill her. You don't honestly think she's going to tell us anything do you?"

"I won't rule anything out, I would like to hope that she will tell us what she can. In that case, I am not sure where things should go from there. Just letting her go free isn't really an option. We also can't deny that her ability to shift could become a great asset just as Eren's has."

"I honestly don't care, do what you want with her. You know where I stand with all of this so leaving the decision up to me is probably a bad idea."

"I see your point. This is bothersome. I know what Hanji would say, so I haven't bothered asking them." He shakes his head and stares down at the comatose woman. The men share the silence, Levi eager to leave the cell, while Erwin is lost to his thoughts.

Annie has been awake through the whole conversation, more than mildly annoyed that they woke her up with their obnoxious voices. This whole pretending to be asleep thing is beginning to wear on her as well, and not just that, but she can feel herself starting to become dehydrated. She knows her time of pretending will soon come to an end and she will have to accept whatever fate they dish out to her. As for her own decision on whether she will speak to them or not, she is still unsure and has questions of her own. The fact is she honestly doesn't know much of the motives behind the man who gave them orders.

'' _Take down the walls and destroy the enemies inside, do this and I'll make sure your village remains safe from harm.' She recalls what he said, but he never explained beyond that, not to her anyway. Her memory of him injecting herself, Reiner and Bertholdt with something to turn them into titans is hazy, everything is blank after that until she reawakens, having regained her humanity._

 _They were just innocent kids at that time, eventually they accepted what they had become. Together they trained and learned to control their newly gained shifter abilities, it became so comfortable with them that they even made up games. Then finally that man sent them to the wall, still just children, unaware of what manner of sin they were really about to commit, of course they didn't know better, that by taking down those walls they were going to destroy countless innocent lives. Her only involvement while taking down Wall Maria was to lure the first wave of titans to the opening created by the boys, simple enough since she could run fast as her titan, and could cover great distances, again it was just another game. The gravity of what they had done didn't hit them until after the damage had been done as they witnessed the many dead people, normal people torn apart, eaten and trampled by the titans_

 _It took them years to recover from the trauma of what they had done, instead of immediately pursuing the next wall they enlisted as trainees and took the time to re-establish what they were sent there for. It's also there that she met Mikasa and while she did her best to remain cold and distanced from the others, not wanting to befriend these people that were her enemies, over those years she found herself enthralled by her. 'Mikasa,' the name brings an ache to her chest and a flood of memories of her time getting to know the woman, even if they were more rivals than anything else and most of their interactions were met with fists and bruises._

 _She'd be a liar if she said she didn't develop romantic feelings for her over the course of their trainee years, eventually leading up to her frustrations getting the better of her on the night that she kissed Mikasa. A kiss that was just as bitter sweet as it was awkward, her break down prior bared her weakness, the fact that she knew that they were enemies and that they could never be anything else, that even the thought of wanting her in any way was wrong, and most of all, knowing that if Mikasa were to come for her life that she wouldn't be able to fight her off. It was a battle she lost before it began, but still in that moment when their lips were pressed together it was one of her happiest moments. That happiness vanished as things moved forward, replacing it with an emptiness that she accepted would never be filled._

 _When Eren turned into a titan their mission changed. Messages were exchanged and it was decided that capturing Eren alive was top priority, this was never explained in detail, just that his ability could be useful to their cause. She knew how much Eren meant to Mikasa, and now she would be tasked with taking him away from her, her resolve wavered but still she tried to accomplish the mission. When Mikasa appeared on both attempts however, she knew it was over and that she would fail. She feels that even if she had succeeded in his abduction Mikasa would have surely chased her to the ends of the Earth to get him back.'_

A hard knock on the heavy door pulls her from her memories, the hinges creaking as it swings open, Erwin's voice rings through her ears immediately after.

"Ah Mikasa you're a bit early, always so eager to be down here." She steps through the door looking refreshed, the bags under her eyes barely visible when she looks towards him. Annie can't help but feel a bit of excitement with the woman's return, her soft voice a welcome change from the mens.

"I was able to get plenty of rest Sir." Her eyes moving from his face down to Annie's, still the same from when she left. "Looks like things here are exciting as ever."

He chuckles in response, "you've got the right of it. Well, since you're here I don't see a reason for me to stick around longer than necessary, I'll go ahead back and get rested myself." Levi remains silent during the exchange between the two, having barely acknowledged Mikasa when she came in, and quietly makes his leave. Erwin isn't too far behind after making sure she has everything she needs. Now left alone with Annie she walks over to the bed, the satchel with the blonde's belongings held in one hand.

"I met your old roommate yesterday, that girl named Hitch. She wanted to get rid of your things from back then so I said I'd return them to you."

'Things? I don't remember owning anything other than clothes, what good is any of that to me now.'

"You won't have much use for the clothes, but this is also in here," she pauses as she digs around in the satchel before pulling out the stuffed animal. "I'm not sure if she threw this in there by accident or if it actually belongs to you, this old teddy bear."

'That thing, I forgot all about it. It's not even mine, some kid gave it to me days before this all happened.' Her thoughts freeze when she feels something brush past her face, the warmth indicating that it is probably Mikasa's arm. She reaches over her and places the bear up against her side.

"You never came off as the type to keep such things, let alone to sleep with one. Not that I'm judging you for it if that's the case." Annie feels that familiar pull of emptiness when she withdrawals her arm, the heat near her face now gone and only the bear against her side is what's left. "I used to have something similar, that was a long time ago though, back before I met Eren. I remember how it would bring me comfort when I was in bed at night and didn't want to bother my parents, up until they died, after that I never cared to have another such toy."

Mikasa becomes silent for a while after that, reminiscing about her childhood to herself. 'At least it sounds like you had a normal childhood, compared to me. The training I didn't mind so much, but being made into a titan, part of me wishes I could have said no and just continue living a normal life. Her ears perk up a while later as Mikasa walks away from her and leaves her alone in the cell briefly, 'bathroom I guess?' She doesn't dare to open her eyes, never knowing when they might be trying to trick her into showing that she is awake. 'My throat is so dry,' she thinks harshly, 'one more day, two at the most before things get bad for me if I don't ask for water. I still don't know what I should do at this point. If I revealed myself to her would she listen to me, would anyone? When they find out I really don't know anything, are they even going to believe me? In the end it doesn't matter, in the end I made my own decisions and I will accept the consequences.'

Several minutes later Mikasa returns to the cell, a lingering scent of food following her. She takes off her maneuver gear and jacket before moving into some stretches. The desire to work on some fighting technique driving her into her fighting stance. Some techniques she's picked up from watching others, some she taught herself, all of which tap into her greatest asset, her raw strength. Every punch and kick is precise, and were there a living target before her they would surely not be alive by the end.

Annie listens intently as her own pulse begins to hasten from the energy in the room radiating from Mikasa. She tries not to open her eyes in order to watch the woman and recalls how she would observe her many times when they were trainees, the way her skin would start to glisten as she worked up a sweat. 'Damn it,' she curses herself, angered by her own weakness and infatuation with this woman.

When she's certain Mikasa is lost to her own world, deep into her exercises, slowly she opens one eye with the hope that she doesn't look in her direction. Ice blue focuses entirely on the controlled form that is displayed for her. None of her movements are wasted, every strike holds a deadly force behind it sending out whiffs of air with them, her breath remains controlled, occasionally taut muscles would strain and become visibly defined against the fabric of her tight button up shirt. Annie can feel heat rise to her cheeks as she gazes at her stomach, having had the chance to feel it with her own hand once before. She closes her eyes, unable to continue watching without risking giving herself up.

She fights off the memories of rubbing her hand against those rock hard and yet still soft abs, how badly she had wanted to just continue that night back then, if for even a moment to be able to forget her duties and lose herself, to pretend she could have something normal in her life. 'Idiot, she stopped me because she didn't want that, not that I deserve someone like her, or anyone for that matter. Someone like me doesn't get the luxury of normalcy.'

Annie keeps her eyes closed for the remainder of Mikasa's workout. When she finishes up the room grows silent again. The rest of the day is not eventful as Mikasa watches over Annie. It's not until late that night, after both have fallen asleep, that a noise escapes into the room. The choking sound wakes Mikasa, immediately springing to full awareness from her nap when her ears pick up the foreign sound that is coming from Annie's throat. She stands from her chair with such haste that it is sent screeching back several feet and instead of alarm her face is painted with concern as she continues to watch the blonde.

Annie is coated in a layer of sweat, her breathing is labored, her bound limbs tugging desperately against the restraints and occasionally a dry cough forces itself from her throat. Her teeth clench around the gag in her mouth and tears flow freely from her closed lids. "Annie?" Mikasa calls out to the distressed and unconscious woman, only to be met with more coughs and her body begins shivering. She tries calling out to her several times, each is met with the same lack of response. Finally she reaches out to feel her forehead only to find that she is burning up, 'What the hell is going on now, this looks bad.' She starts to pull her hand away but is frozen in place when Annie mumbles something against her gag.

Mikasa isn't sure what to do in this situation, she could remove the gag and try to comprehend the woman's sleep talk or she could just send for Hanji and hope they can help figure this out.

She mulls both options over in her mind, 'it would take a long time for word to reach them and for them to return here. Taking off the gag is a huge risk though, but maybe I could understand what she's saying if I do.' A few moments more of Annie's coughing fit and Mikasa comes to a decision. 'I'll do it.'

In Annie's mind there is nothing but a frightening nightmare that has taken hold of her. The world is covered in gore and blood as she runs endlessly in titan form as a hoard of titan's give chase behind her, each relentless in their need to devour her. Outrunning them should not be a problem but here they stay relentlessly close to her heels and show no signs of letting up. She glances back, eyes widening at the sheer numbers, the sea of titan's. Her powerful legs keep propelling her onward, ahead she can see a forest of giant trees and heads towards it with the hopes of losing her pursuers.

As she steps within the tree line the scenery changes drastically, all of the trees melt and then vanish along with the titans and she grinds her feet into the ground to bring herself to a halt. All around her is something she's never seen before, tall buildings made of shiny metals and glass. Not knowing what to make of the structures she reaches out to touch the one next to herself, having to look up as it is taller than she is. As she presses against it her hand sinks in sending glass shards everywhere and it begins to crumble beneath her touch. It's then that the ground starts to quake violently, and not a moment later it splits open beneath her feet. She tries to scream as she falls down into an inky blackness but she can't find her voice.

Her arms flail as she falls, desperately seeking for anything to grab onto. Out of the darkness a large hand appears and snatches her up. Again the scenery changes as the darkness fades into a mountainous area that reminds her of her home. She squirms and claws at the large hand unable to escape as it begins to crush her, vision growing hazy before focusing on the large face that belongs to the colossal titan. She tries to cry out Bertholdt's name to make him stop, to ask why he is doing this. She only gains a dull stare from him and the pressure around her intensifies, the unnerving sound of bones snapping and flesh tearing fill her ears. For a moment she thought she could hear her name being called out, but the voice does not belong to Bertholdt.

An instant later and she's suddenly no longer in his grasp as she stands alone in an open field. A gentle breeze blows the blonde hair out of her face to reveal that she is not alone. Before her stands Mikasa with a serene expression on her face, her eyes closed as she appears to be enjoying the breeze with her red scarf flowing freely to the side. Again she tries to use her voice, to call out to the woman before her, but nothing comes out so she takes a step forward before kneeling down to better see her face. Slowly she reaches out towards her, trying to gain her attention but before her hand can get close gray eyes slide open.

Mikasa looks up at Annie with a blank look in her eyes, blinking slowly before reaching down for the handles of her blades. Annie can feel a sense of panic rush through her as Mikasa's expression changes instantly from serene to one filled with malice as her eyes narrow at her. Annie pulls her arm back away, not sure what to do. 'I should accept my fate, this is only right.' She thinks to herself and closes her eyes, 'if it's Mikasa then-...' She looks down when something touches one of her large fingers, shocked when she finds Mikasa there holding onto it tenderly, 'what? Why?'

"Annie," her name is called out so softly that it sends a shiver down her spine but she doesn't dare move a muscle, afraid that if she does this moment will end. She blinks and suddenly she is no longer a titan and Mikasa is still before her, gently holding her hand and then looking to her face, "Annie-..." again she calls her name, something else is said after but Annie can't catch it as the sound around her begins to distort and soon the world around her turns into flames which quickly consume the woman before her and vanishes.

'No! Why is this happening? This is a nightmare right? Why can't I wake up then?.. Or maybe I died and this is my punishment, to suffer forever. This is what I deserve, nothing else.' Tears begin to stream down her face, unable to handle all of the images that flash before her, of being surrounded by titans, of killing innocent people, of her father turning his back to her for all her failures, of Mikasa dying a gruesome death, and finally an image of Eren from the last time she saw him, en-flamed and truly terrifying, that moment just before he tears into her.

Except the image of Eren isn't an image as he starts to move, slowly at first before breaking into a sprint towards her. Her mind fills with a fear that she cannot fight, and instead she turns and runs away, hoping to escape his wrath this time but her movement is sluggish and quickly he is upon her. Blue eyes widen when she glances back and he pounces onto her, their large bodies crashing into the ground with him pinning her down. 'No, please.' His primal roars above her send her screaming desperately, wanting to get away, not wanting to die like this. At first her screams are silent but finally her voice breaks through loudly filling the air, but it's for naught as he bites down onto the nape of her neck, her shrill cry and darkness is all that's left.

"No!" Annie cries out as her tear filled eyes snap open, she's sent into a frenzy when she finds she can't move her limbs, completely forgetting for a moment where she is. Her mind does not even catch the sound of metal sliding against metal when Mikasa pulls a blade on her and holds it menacingly close to her throat.

"Annie... Annie!" Mikasa can see that Annie is not of her mind in that moment and that yelling probably isn't going to help calm her down any faster. She takes a deep breath before reaching out with her free hand and grasps one of her's, "Annie calm down," her voice comes out softer than intended but it seems to have the desired effect she was looking for as the blonde starts to slowly relax, her screams and pleas become silent as her mouth hangs open while she struggles to calm her breathing.

Annie's frantic thoughts edge back into reality, her previously blurred vision pulls everything around her back into focus. She knows her cover is now blown as she lays there in short breathed silence feeling the chill of cold steel very near her throat. She can't bring herself to look at Mikasa right away, she doesn't have to as she can feel those eyes staring her down. A bead of sweat slides down from her forehead, she realizes just how badly shaken the nightmare has made her. 'Why am I so weak?' she thinks to herself before a stream of coughs rack her body, quickly reminding her that she is becoming dangerously dehydrated. The fit nearly sends her throat slicing against the blade if not for Mikasa pulling it back enough to give her some space.

Steely eyes never leave Annie's face even as she suffers a nasty dry cough for several minutes. 'She's really awake now, I should be sending for Hanji and Erwin, but-...' her thoughts are cut short when a weak voice escapes pale pink lips.

"W-ater-..." The sound barely makes it out of the girls throat before she's thrown into another fit of uncontrollable coughs. Mikasa straightens at the request, thinking it over before glancing at her own untouched glass a few feet away that she filled hours ago. She makes the decision to give her some of the clear liquid as she sheaths her blade to retrieve the glass. She comes back to stand next to Annie before placing her free hand beneath the woman's head and lifting it up slightly while pressing the rim against her dry lips.

"Drink," her tone reveals nothing of her own rampant thoughts and emotions in that moment and Annie doesn't hesitate to comply as she takes several slow sips knowing that if she indulges too much too quickly it will just come back up.

With her thirst quenched for the moment, and feeling that her life is not immediately in danger Annie relaxes a moment. "Annie," she calls her name and finally the woman looks up at her, blue clashing with gray and for a few moments they just stare into the others. "Do you understand the situation that you are in, or where we are right now?" For a brief moment Annie considers lying, but decides that she doesn't want to drag the rest of these events out, she nods in acknowledgment. Mikasa huffs at the response before removing her hand from behind her head and placing the glass back down, her hands move to rest at ready on the handles of her blades without drawing them.

"How long have you been awake?"

"Several days," her voice cracks as her throat is still dry and her vocals have gone mostly unused for so long, it sounds foreign even to herself. She's unable to hold that fierce gaze boring into her so she looks away.

"How much have you heard?" Mikasa keeps her questions simple for now, seeing just how cooperative she will be.

"Enough."

"So I shouldn't need to explain things then, and that you should know what options lie before you right now." Still looking away from her Annie nods. "So what will it be?"

Annie toils over everything, but her mind has already been made up. "I want to live."

"Which means you will cooperate? And not resist?" Annie's nod sends a surprising wave of relief through Mikasa, but even so she refuses to let her guard down just yet. She starts to walk away towards the door stopping briefly to call out to her, "don't try to break free, I'll return shortly." Annie huffs as she has no intentions of doing so. Mikasa calls one of the guards and tells him to summon Hanji and Erwin as soon as possible but doesn't inform him that Annie is awake. 'I'd like them not to rush too much, I want this chance to talk to her alone before they get here.'

She returns and finds Annie exactly as she left, still facing the opposite wall. "I've sent for the others so I suggest you start thinking of what you will tell them now. While we wait I have questions, and I have no doubt you have some of your own, right?" At this Annie finally looks back to her with a cautious look on her face.

"Yes, I do." The tension in the room lessens when it seems as though Mikasa isn't going to aim a blade directly at her unless she tries something. For a split second she considers just biting her tongue to shift, to make another bet that she can escape from this place somehow, but upon watching Mikasa walk closer and stop a safe distance away from her with a mix of feelings on her face, she decides against it. 'If I were to do it now Mikasa would surely be crushed but, I can't.'

"Then ask." Annie thinks for a moment, wondering why Mikasa is being so lenient on her so soon, but shoves that thought to the side and thinks of what she'd like to know the most.

"Reiner and Bertholdt, where are they? Confined as I am?" She keeps to herself that she already heard what Erwin had said about them being dead in order to see if Mikasa would reveal the same information.

"They're both dead." She responds with no hesitation or emotion. "Them, and your commander the Beast titan." Annie maintains eye contact with her, even as she tries to swallow the response, it's exactly what she overheard before. Her eyebrows draw together.

"How? When? I honestly don't see how any of that can be possible, not all of them."

"I'm sure you can understand how, we sliced open the napes of their necks when they turned on us with their titans. Four years ago we went to try and reclaim Wall Maria, they met us there in an ambush. We lost many of our own that day, but we won the fight. They really did want to take at least Reiner and Bertholdt alive but, they resisted and we were left with no choice." Mikasa's eye grew dark and distant as she explains what happened, recalling that fight is not easy for anyone that was involved. This change in demeanor does not escape Annie's gaze and it really starts to sink in as a cold sensation runs down her spine.

'They really did die then. Just watching her right now, I can see she isn't lying. Which also means my home village would have... By now there's probably nothing left without that man's protection. What now then? I have no reason to exist anymore, right? I should just-...'

"Annie, are you listening?" The blonde's thoughts are cut off when she's called out. "I can tell you're in shock, I'm sure I would be too if our roles were reversed. But," she pauses for a brief moment slowly crossing her arms and her expression changing to one that means business as the grim memories of the past battle are pushed from her own mind, "I have things I'd like to know as well." Annie tries to refocus on the present and her situation, given the circumstances she decides that she'll have time to process everything later, for now she'll just answer the questions that come at her.

"I'll get right to the big one." She watches as Mikasa's fist clench tightly and eyes narrow dangerously at her. "What were you trying to accomplish by attacking the walls? What was the goal?" Annie cringes internally, she knew this was coming but still she doubts her answer will be believed, even if it is the truth. She briefly closes her eyes and sighs before looking back up to Mikasa's expectant glare.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?" She tries not to flinch at the seething look aimed at her now or at the sound of her clutching at the handles of her blades once again, but doesn't draw them just yet.

"No, I don't. Not really anyway. Understand, the three of us were the same age as you guys at the time back then. We were forced into our role as titans in order to ensure our villages safety. But because we were just kids we failed to understand what horrors we'd truly become. Eventually we accepted our shifting abilities as part of life, but then that man, our commander, decided we were ready and sent us to the wall, so that we might eliminate the threat within to reclaim humanity." She pauses a moment to recollect her thoughts, glancing down to the floor when she felt a stinging sensation in her eyes.

"By the time we had finished with the first two walls it was too late for us to go back. We realized at that moment that what we were fighting wasn't monsters, but people just like us, normal people. That's why we joined the training squad, for a long time we couldn't accept our own actions, we thought to repent and do what we could to fix it. Reiner and Bertholdt decided to continue with the original mission by taking out the third wall, but then Eren changed into a titan and revealed what was hidden in his basement. Our goals changed and it was decided that we would capture him alive in order to use him. You know the rest."

There is a long moment of silence between the two, Mikasa continues boring her gaze into Annie with her fists nearly drawing blood from her own palms as she tried to absorb this information. "That's it?" Annie finally returns her gaze to the angry woman and nods.

"I have my doubts that anyone will accept anything I say as the truth. But that is the extent of my knowledge. We were just normal people thrown into the chaos and then followed the flow. What that man intended to happen in the end, I don't know, and why he couldn't have just done it on his own, I don't know that either. He never explained it to us since we were just kids. If anyone would've known more about his ambitions, that would probably of been my father, but, assuming the worst case scenario. Without that mans protection my village will have perished by now, along with my father and any information he may have held."

Mikasa fights the sudden gnawing urge to punch Annie in that moment, anything to vent her frustrations but she reels her emotions back in. Her eyes close with her brows drawn together as she takes some time to process everything. 'She doesn't know, and yet she still did it. Them being children back then makes everything even more fucked up. But is what she says the truth? Not like we have anyone else to speak against her claims. If she isn't lying then what does that mean, it doesn't make her innocent, she still killed many people even after realizing that what they were doing was wrong. But from Annie's perspective it was to protect their own home. I want to believe her but, it just doesn't feel right at all. Even if I did believe her, I doubt the others will accept her answer.'

Nothing else is said between the two. The silence is only broken by the sound of someone knocking on the door in the hallway. The sound breaks both women out of their thoughts, both feeling at a loss. Mikasa straightens her posture and heads for the door, "I hope you're prepared, Annie" she calls softly before exiting the cell door to go let in who ever had made it there first. As much as Annie tries, she knows that between Hanji and Erwin, it will be difficult to actually prepare for what is to come.

* * *

A/N: Another slow one, I know. Next chapter will bring a good change of pace, I promise! Until then~

*Also I just want to say, holy crap at chapter 80, hitting me in the feels. Not going to spoil anything but damn I'm starting to panic for everyone.*


	6. Let's Spar

Chapter 6

A/N: Late, late, super late. I'm so sorry for the extreme delay on this chapter. I had to put a lot of things on hold over the past few weeks for finals, graduation, and finishing cosplays in time for an anime convention this past weekend. (I cosplayed Annie and her titan form ;) to my sadness I could not find a Mikasa!) Anyway, please enjoy!

* * *

Let's Spar

Mikasa has been standing outside the cell for hours, leaning against the wall and listening to the conversations inside. Hanji and Erwin both arrived together and, after filling them both in on what she was able to gather from Annie earlier, the both of them went into the cell and performed their own interrogation. 'This really is starting to look hopeless, she's told them exactly what she told me. Is there really nothing to be gained? That we'll just have to accept the fact we'll never know about the enemies motives.' She looks over to the door, it has remained open since the other two went in, but she chose to stay outside. 'They've all remained pretty calm considering the circumstances, no outbursts, no arguing.' She perks up at the sound of footsteps heading to the door and shortly after Erwin exits, stopping just next to her. His expression is worrisome, confusion mixed with anger perhaps, or maybe just disappointment.

"This is turning into an unfortunate situation. I am still skeptical of her knowledge, but I get the strong feeling that she is not lying to us, and while she has agreed to cooperate and even to allow Hanji to perform experiments on her, I will not be able to trust her, not yet anyway. Far too many lives were lost at her hands to do so." He rubs at his shoulder while stretching his neck.

"Are we keeping her here then?"

"For the time being, yes. I think that's best. Even if we allowed her more freedom to roam, and she indeed did not cause any trouble, the public would not be so willing to accept that, and then we will be faced with a whole different problem. That is not something we want to have to deal with at this point, especially not with the survey corps next expedition outside the walls coming in a few short weeks. No, she will remain here under observation and will commit to testing under Hanji's command. I will need you to remain in charge of keeping things in order around here with them, I hope you will have no complaints to this."

In her mind Mikasa feels as though things are progressing almost too smoothly, but she also feels relief. "Of course Sir. Does this mean Hanji will not be going on the expedition now?"

"That is correct. They will remain here, along with Sasha. I want a handful of elites here should anything happen while the rest are outside the walls. I will still be here as well of course, but as I am I am not very useful in a fight against titans, or shifters for that matter. While the survey corps is gone I will be handling business mostly with the military police and higher ups. They'll need to be updated on the situation here."

"I see."

"On another note, Hanji will removing Annie's restraints before they leave. She'll be allowed to move freely within the cell so long as she continues to comply with the rules we've set down. I would advise no one stay in the cell with her longer than necessary, but I'll leave that to your judgment. The only time she may leave the cell is for the bathroom and whenever Hanji calls for it." He glances at her briefly before asking, "are you alright to continue your guard duty for the next several days?"

She straightens and nods, "yes, of course Sir. I'll make sure to limit my time within the cell and report any suspicious activities."

"Good, I feel that things are okay to leave them as is for now. Hanji will take care of the rest. I'll check back in a few days."

"Sir." She offers a salute as he leaves the underground dungeon before looking back to the open cell door. 'Letting her out of the restraints, this is all going so fast. Does he really think she is that trustworthy? Hanji too.' She shakes her head, 'No, I have to trust in their judgment and focus on my part.'

"Mikasa," she hears Hanji call her name from within the cell and moves to look inside.

"Yes?"

"Mind helping me with these? It would make it much faster to have a second pair of hands taking all of these straps off." They gesture towards the ones around Annie's ankles and waist. Mikasa nods and walks over to them, offering a quick glance at the blonde's distraught expression, blue eyes looking pointedly away from her. She pulls her eyes away and starts working on the complicated knots that were left by Connie around her ankles.

While they do this Annie says nothing and waits patiently for them to finish. She nearly jumps when Mikasa leans over her to retrieve the far end of the strap around her waist. The subtle reaction doesn't go unnoticed by Mikasa and their eyes make contact while her hands continue working on the knot there. Gray leaves blue as the knot is freed and the final strap is pulled away.

"You should get up and move around to get the blood flowing through your limbs again, slowly." Hanji advises her while gathering all of the straps into a neat ball. Annie follows the suggestion and slowly pushes herself into a sit, the other two watching her warily. The change in posture after so long of not moving causes her head to pound slightly and she reaches up to hold it. "That's normal, you'll probably have a headache off and on for a day or two. Hmm, I'll see if I can find you something to eat. Mikasa I'm going upstairs to store these, you make sure she doesn't hurt herself getting up. I'll be back."

"Alright." She watches Hanji leave and close the cell door behind them. Now locked in the room with Annie who has now pulled her knees up to her chest and is still holding her head in her hand.

"I'm surprised." Annie breaks the silence first without offering to move or open her eyes. "I honestly didn't expect to be sitting here as I am now." Mikasa shifts from one foot to the other while watching her.

"Neither did I." She doesn't really know what to say to her beyond that. A long pause fills the air with silence.

"Do you hate me?" Annie asks softly, almost so soft that Mikasa just barely makes out what she said with her head now resting against her knees.

"What?" She has to ask, not really certain what Annie is trying to get at.

"For everything I've done, for every life I've taken, for trying to take away your family. You hate me, right?" She doesn't know why she's asking this of her. She deserves to be hated, or so she feels.

Mikasa stands silent for a while, thinking of the question. 'Do I hate her? I don't really know. I certainly have a dislike and distrust for her, and I hate what she has done, what she tried to do.'

"I don't know," is her response, because at that time she really can't sort that thought out. "I do hate what you did. But I don't know if I hate you." Something about that response gives Annie a small sense of relief, to know that Mikasa may not actually hate her, and that maybe with this second chance she has been granted she can make up for her past.

"I see," is all she says in response. Her back begins to ache from her posture and moves to sit up straight, her headache lessening as time goes on. She stretches her arms above her head, several joints offering a terrible symphony of pops and cracks. She grunts from the odd mix of relief and pain from the action before relaxing again. She slowly swings her legs over the side of the bed, inching them down one at a time until her bare feet touch the cool ground. The hard icy feeling sends a shiver up her spine, momentarily wondering what happened to her boots.

Not a moment later they are thrown to her and land next to her feet, she glances up with a small smile to Mikasa who maintains a safe distance away. "Thanks," she offers softly, taking a moment to let her body adjust to the new sitting position before reaching down to pull the boots on. Her weakened muscles makes the task a bit more difficult than it should be but she manages to pull them on. 'Damn, I've gotten really weak,' she sighs to herself before sitting up straight again, the pounding in her skull makes its return and she raises her hands to rub at her temples.

Mikasa turns her attention away from the pained expression on Annie's face at the sound of someone approaching the door. A moment later Hanji returns with a small tray of rations and a glass of water. "Sorry, that took longer than I thought it would. I got you something to eat and some mild pain medication. You should take it easy for now but try to get up and move around when you feel ready." They walk up to Annie and hand her the tray which she takes shakily before setting it down on the bed next to herself.

"Thank you, I should be back to normal quicker than you think."

"Oho, titan's ability to regenerate sure is convenient isn't it." Hanji says thoughtfully and then nods. "Well in that case, I'll give you three days to recover. That should be more than enough time before I have you show me what you are capable of. Be ready for it, I won't go easy on you." The expression on their face sends a shiver down Annie's spine, she knows that she's in for hell, but if it means she can start to put things back together then she will accept the punishment.

"I'll be ready." Hanji grins satisfied from the response and walks next to Mikasa.

"I have a lot of work waiting for me back in town, I'll leave this in your hands for the time being. Keep a close watch on her." They pat her shoulder before walking off upon receiving a nod from her.

With just the two of them now left alone in the room again a silence fills the air between them. Annie stares down at the tray of food next to her, her stomach growling from the sight. She starts picking at the roll of bread, glancing up when she hears Mikasa walk to the door. "I'll be just outside, let me know if you need anything," is all she says before leaving Annie on her own. She appreciates the space and quickly downs the medication before taking the time to slowly eat the food given to her.

By the time she's finished her eyelids are heavy, 'I'm so tired, this sucks.' She sighs leaning back to rest her elbows against the bed and stares blankly at the stone ceiling for a while, sleep creeping up on her as she lays back down on the bed. She looks to the closed door wondering for a moment what Mikasa is doing out there before her eyes begin to slide closed. 'I wonder how she feels about this situation right now. She says she doesn't know if she hates me or not, I guess that's not a bad thing. I'm going to make this right.' Her thoughts fade out as she is pulled into sleep.

Outside Mikasa munches on a steamed potato while staring blankly at the wall across from her chair. She notices how quiet it's become inside the cell and gets up to take a peak through the small hole in the door only to find that Annie is fast asleep. She lets out a soft sigh before sitting back down. 'I want to ask her...' she thinks the question over in her mind, trying to figure out what the answer would be, and how her own reaction to the answer would be. 'This really shouldn't matter right now, but I can't stop thinking about it. What if she forgot all about it? I'd feel stupid asking her about it then. That damn kiss, what did it mean?' She can't help but feel agitated as the frustration fuels her thoughts. Eventually she chases them from her mind and relaxes, her thoughts shifting to Eren and her friends as she wonders what they are up to.

It's several hours later before Annie wakes up again. She feels her energy returning to her and the aches in her body are all but gone. She drags herself from the bed, standing slowly and moving around the room to test the strength in her legs. 'This is the only good thing about being a titan shifter, being able to recover from such exhaustion and malnourishment so quickly with so little effort.' She looks back to the small bed and at the stuffed bear that is still resting on it, squinting as she recalls the little girl that gave it to her as a reward for helping her find her lost dog.

A few minutes later Mikasa picks up the sounds of movement within and gets up to inspect it. Her eyes widen slightly upon seeing Annie down on the floor doing push ups. Her hoodie was thrown carelessly on the bed leaving Annie in just her sports bra, pants and boots, a thin sheen of sweat is already visible down her back. 'She's already recovered enough to be working out?' She continues watching her in silence for a while longer before walking away.

With a shake of her head she leaves briefly and opens the cell door when she returns a while later with a tray of food and finds Annie relaxing on the floor. "I brought you something to eat" she calls out as she walks towards her. Annie looks at her and then to the tray of food, a blush rises to her cheeks when her stomach lets out a loud growl.

"Thank you" she says softly as she reaches out for the tray. For a moment their fingertips brush against the others and they glance away from each other and Mikasa quickly retracts her hands. The quick passing thought of what she did just a few nights ago while thinking of those hands brings up a blush of her own. She turns away to hide it.

"Let me know if you need anything else." The tone in her voice gives cause for Annie to look back towards her with a brow raised. She is greeted with the back of Mikasa's jacket, proudly displaying the wings of freedom emblem, and her scarf flowing behind her.

'She's never going to get rid of that silly scarf,' she smirks and laughs to herself as she sets the tray down. She may be short but she's only a few strides away from Mikasa, and within a moment she walks silently up to her. She doesn't know why she's doing this, but also doesn't try to stop her own actions as she reaches out and wraps her arms around Mikasa's waist.

She gasps from being taken by surprise, 'where was my mind just now to allow her to do this unnoticed?' She growls and within an instant is gripping down on the blonde's wrists, turning her head back to try and look at her but can only see the top of her head as Annie's face is buried into her back. "What are you doing Annie? Let me go."

"I don't know what I'm doing."

"What? That doesn't make any sense, now let me go," her voice carries a dangerous edge to it that would make anyone lesser cower away, but not Annie. Her grip tightens around the thin wrists but Annie resists by tightening her own hold around her waist.

"I don't know," she says again, her voice is soft and muffled against her shirt and her breath making her back warm through the fabric. Mikasa takes a moment to calm down, not feeling that the hold presents her with any danger and is confident she could shake her off easily if she felt it became necessary. She loosens her grip over the wrists but does not let go. Even though it's an awkward embrace it brings them both a sense of comfort as they continue to stand there like that for a while longer.

"How long are you going to hold onto me like this?" Her question is met with silence as Annie seems in no rush to end the warm contact and she sighs softly. "I still don't understand you at all, Annie. Just like that night, doing something so random and throwing me off guard. What do you want from me?" There is no anger or annoyance in her voice, just a confused gentleness.

Finally Annie sighs and releases her, backing away a few steps before grasping one arm and looking to the side, suddenly looking very timid. "I guess I just wanted to be close to someone," she rubs nervously at her arm before adding a quiet "sorry." Mikasa runs a hand through her raven locks, at a loss to the situation and not really sure how to react. Not that she didn't like it, but more to the fact that she did and not being able to come up with an appropriate way to handle it.

"I see. A little warning next time." She watches as Annie nods with her eyes downcast then leaves her alone to eat, and to go sort through her own thoughts.

There is no interaction between them for a few hours, Annie silently eating her food and Mikasa lost to her thoughts. Until there is a knock on the door from within the cell. Mikasa looks to it in surprise before getting up and moving to it. "Something wrong?"

"No, I just need to use the restroom."

"Oh." Mikasa unlocks the door to find Annie standing back several feet. The bathroom isn't far down the hall as they stop just a few doors down, Mikasa gesturing to it. "It's right here, I'll wait outside."

"Thank you." Annie goes inside and hesitates a moment before closing the door to take care of her business. Inside is a pretty average bathroom with a toilet and water basin to clean up in. She takes a moment to wash her face before leaving, and as promised Mikasa is standing across the hall from the door looking bored. She looks up at her as she walks out and quietly leads her back to the cell. Obediently she goes inside stopping just a few feet in before turning back to face Mikasa, a raven eyebrow raising.

"Mind if I ask you something Mikasa?"

"Um, okay. What is it?" Annie crosses her arms with a confident expression.

"I want to spar with you."

"Are you sure your body is up for that kind of thing?" Mikasa's eyebrows are drawn together, skeptical about the sudden request.

"I can handle sparring, and it would help me get ready for whatever Hanji has planned in a few days." Mikasa watches her while thinking it over.

'I'll probably get scolded if I do this without someone else here, but even so...' She looks down at the determined expression on Annie's face and can tell she isn't going to just let her say no. "Fine, I'll spar with you." Annie's expression softens before she steps further into the room stretching out her arms behind her back as she walks, the fabric of her hoodie straining against her torso. She comes to a stop in the center where she does a few more stretches and warm-ups.

Mikasa follows behind her, not bothering with stretching or warming up. Her eyes never leave Annie, studying her form and movements which she hasn't been able to see since before they graduated from the training corps. She stops a comfortable distance away from her and decides to take off her jacket to improve her own mobility, aware of how flexible Annie's small body can be, her scarf joins it so it won't get in her way. 'This should be interesting, funny that I'm actually excited to do this.'

Annie finishes her warm ups and turns to face Mikasa, their serious expressions are mirrored by the other. As Annie lifts up her arms and takes on her usual stance Mikasa feels her heart skip a beat, the excitement of the incoming match and the familiarity from seeing Annie in her stance sends a buzzing sensation up her spine. With a slight smile on her face Mikasa relaxes and prepares in anticipation, she knows Annie will make the first move, she always did.

Annie doesn't move for a long moment as ice blues pierce into Mikasa, studying her relaxed form which she is familiar with. Her heart is racing but she doesn't let her own excitement show, instead her face is like stone, completely unreadable as she analyzes her opponent. Her steady breathing gives nothing away and within an instant she's moving and a powerful leg is swinging out towards Mikasa's shins.

Anticipating this first strike Mikasa is quick to react and jumps clear of the swipe. Her right fist extends forward as she propels herself into a fierce right hook. Annie moves her head quickly to the side as the fist flies past her cheek sending a gust of air through her bangs. Blue eyes widen and blonde hair becomes a blur with Annie's next attack as she places a firm grasp on Mikasa's arm and after taking a quick step forward a powerful leg is sweeping Mikasa from behind her knee.

'Shit!' is all she has time to think before the room is spinning around her, the momentum spinning her backwards and gravity dragging her down towards the ground. On reflex she reaches out with her free hand effectively grasping onto Annie's wrist, surprising her as she begins to be pulled down with her. Mikasa lands on the base of her neck with a heavy thud against the cold stone floor, immediately after the weight of Annie's body crashes down across her stomach, forcing her to expel what air is in her lungs.

Her mind is slow to process what just happened to her, even though she had seen the technique performed several times before, she herself had never fallen victim to it. Slowly she props herself up onto her elbows and glances down at the shocked expression on Annie's face, the blonde has yet to move off of her stomach. A sting in her neck and down her back causes her to hiss under her breath and she rubs at her now sore, and likely bruising, neck. "Fuck Annie, now I get how that move could work on people larger than yourself."

Annie recovers from her shock of actually having her own technique back fire and finally sits up, moving herself off of Mikasa and watches as she tries to ease the pain in her neck. She leans over a bit to glance at the slowly darkening spot, wincing slightly. "Sorry, I should of held back a bit." Mikasa shakes her head and looks up at Annie, neck straining against the pain.

"No, I'll be fine. A bump on the neck is hardly the worst I've been through over the past several years."

A pang of guilt settles in Annie's stomach, knowing she was partially responsible for the pain Mikasa has suffered, 'and for what', she sighs to herself. "Sit up." The soft command has Mikasa raising a brow at her but silently does so, both out of curiosity and because her back was hurting more in the position she was in. Without another word Annie moves to sit behind her and reaches up to her neck. She moves Mikasa's hand out of the way that had been rubbing where it is sore and replaces it with her own.

Mikasa resists the urge to pull away as surprisingly cool hands begin tenderly massaging the sensitive skin surrounding the bruise. Nothing is said between the two and eventually she finds herself relaxing and even leaning into the touch. She doesn't know how much time passes and is soon starting to doze off. At the sight of Mikasa's head bobbing down Annie decides to stop, leaning to one side to try and see Mikasa's face. Her eyes are closed and mouth is open slightly, 'I wonder how long it's been since she last slept.' Slowly she reaches out and moves some stray hairs away from her closed eyes.

She sighs and glances towards her bed feeling tired herself and then looks back to the sleeping woman next to her. Annie kneels next to her and slides an arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back then slowly lifts Mikasa from the ground, standing with ease with her in her arms. She walks towards the bed and lowers her down onto the thin mattress, surprised that she did not wake up during the process. The bed is far too small for them both to fit so Annie sits down on the floor next to it leaning back against the frame before closing her eyes. 'I wonder what she'll think when she wakes up and finds herself there,' she laughs to herself.

* * *

A/N: I didn't spend too much time editing this one since it's been delayed far too long already, so I'm sorry if there are any big errors. Next chapter will have a bit of jumping in time so I can finally get them out of that darn dungeon and get things progressing between them, haha. It certainly should not take me over a month to get it out either. =.=


	7. Experiments?

Chapter 7

A/N: Beast chapter is beast, sorry it took so long. Please enjoy!

* * *

Experiments?

Hanji waits outside of the old castle that has been housing Annie. They have a few horses prepared and waiting along with them as they explain to the guards what is going to happen, and ease any of their concerns. "I will be taking Annie out to the nearby forest for some experiments, and like I've already said, there is nothing to worry about. Mikasa and Sasha will be there keeping an eye on things just in case."

"But shouldn't the rest of us come along too? I mean this is really dangerous! What if she makes a run for it?" One of the worried men pleas.

"No, the rest of you are to remain here. If that were to happen then you lot would only get in their way. They have fought and defeated many titans on their own before, and while Annie is a bit different, we know most of her tricks. That, and it is just unlikely that she will try anything. She has no reason to fight against us anymore, so put your trust in Mikasa, Sasha and myself to keep things under control. Should things go terribly we'll fire a black signal."

"But-..." Hanji gives the fearful man a glare filled with daggers forcing him to shut his mouth and discontinue his complaints. He looks to the ground in defeat, and for a moment they share the silence until a pair of footsteps are heard coming out of the castle, louder clicks on the stone degrading into muffled thumps on the dirt.

Annie flinches, shielding her eyes for a long moment from the bright glare of the sun, the first time she's seen sunlight since she turned to crystal. She could hear a few gasps and none too quiet whispers from the guards that were waiting outside, and after opening her eyes again adjusting to the light she glances through the numerous terrified faces, none she recognizes.

Mikasa walks in front of her staring all the soldiers down, giving a silent warning for them all to keep away from Annie. They spread out and clear a path to Hanji and the horses. "Ah it's about time you two got out here. I hope you got enough rest Annie, I won't be gentle on you today." Hanji says with a scary glint in their eyes, the promise of exhaustion and pain hidden there. A faint blush on Mikasa's cheeks doesn't go unnoticed by Hanji and they wonder what the reason behind it is, but quickly dismiss it as the thought of getting their experiments underway are more urgent.

"I'm as ready as one can be." Her tone sounding bored and mildly irritated. 'I finally get to step out of that hole in the ground and straight into hell' she sighs inwardly before glancing to Mikasa next to her, noting the blush still lingering on her cheeks that she is trying to hide behind her scarf, knowing exactly why she is blushing. She lets a faint smile slip for a second but it's gone before anyone notices it and she walks to the horse that Hanji motions for her to mount.

Mikasa still not talking mounts the horse next to her, which are tethered together, and waits for Hanji's orders. A few moments later Sasha comes jogging out of the castle with a satchel, likely filled with food, and a piece of bread in her mouth. Hanji puts a hand on their hip while giving the brunette a side long glance and then shakes their head. "Seriously hon, we're only going to be out for about half a day, is it really necessary to bring that much food?" Not skipping a beat Sasha nods fiercely as she comes to a stop next to them and pulls the bread from her mouth.

"Of course! Between the four of us this should be just enough to make sure we don't starve" she says with a wide grin. Hanji sighs and waves their hand to dismiss Sasha before mounting their horse. "Hey, you'll be thanking me later when you're hungry." She looks over to Annie and Mikasa seated on their horses, eyes lingering a moment longer on the blonde. She offers them both a smile and then bounds over to the same horse that Hanji is waiting on and climbs up to sit behind them.

"Sasha, you have your own horse right there." They turn slightly in their saddle to look back at the younger brunette with an exasperated look.

"Don't care, I'm riding with you, this way I can make sure I don't drop our precious food." She chuckles and wraps her arms around Hanji's waist, making sure her precious food satchel is secure as well before giving the horse a good kick sending it quickly into motion. Hanji yelps in surprise from the sudden jolt, barely having a chance to react and tightly grasps onto the reigns and brings the horse to a slower pace.

"You're insane you know that?!" They yell back at her only to receive more laughter. "Mikasa, Annie, let's get a move on before she does something else."

The two women shrug and nudge their horses into motion quickly catching up to Hanji and falling into pace behind them. Mikasa keeps Annie in her peripheral vision at all times, occasionally glancing at her, and whenever Annie would glance back at her she'd quickly turn her gaze away. This reaction brings a frown to the blonde's face and with a sigh she faces forward again. At one point she catches Sasha watching their awkward exchange over her shoulder, an uncharacteristic scowl narrowed at her, one that dared her to try anything that might hurt her friend. Annie rolls her eyes and brushes some hair from her face, deciding to just ignore the others for the remainder of the ride.

* * *

 _-Yesterday-_

 _Mikasa first awoke in a mild state of confusion, 'Where am I? Why am I in a bed?', she wondered as she sat up, stormy eyes taking in the familiar room. It only takes a moment for her to snap to attention, and before she jolts out of the bed entirely, she catches the sound of a soft snore. She looks down and catches the sight of Annie asleep, arm resting on the bed and leaning heavily against it, her mouth open slightly. 'Did she put me in bed? I don't even remember falling asleep, when did-... Oh.' It was then that she remembered the amazing massage that Annie was giving her and how comfortable she felt in the moment._

 _A soft smile reaches her lips as her eyes leave the blondes face and focus instead on the soft hand that is resting on top of one of her own. Whether the gesture was intended or on accident Mikasa feels her face grow warm, again recalling a few nights ago. She's so lost in her own thoughts that she doesn't notice the Annie has woken up and is watching her with a curious expression._

" _Did you know you look cute when you're blushing like that," the soft comment comes as a surprise and Mikasa jerks her hand away from Annie's, eyes wide as she stares back. Her cheeks burning now, embarrassed. "You kind of just passed out last night. I didn't want to wake you up, or leave you on the floor so I carried you over here." Deciding against teasing Mikasa too much further Annie stands and moves away from the bed, stretching out as she does so. "Damn my ass is cold from sleeping on the floor though."_

" _You really didn't have to, waking me up would have been fine." Thankful for the space Mikasa calms herself, face returning to its normal shade and she too stands up from the rickety old bed. "But thank you, I didn't even realize I was that tired." She takes a moment to stretch also and instantly regrets the decision as the bruise on her neck from the fall sends a sting of pain down her spine. "Shit," she curses softly immediately reaching back to touch gently at the nape of her neck, wincing at how sensitive and sore it is._

 _The reaction making Annie feel guilty again, "sorry about that, I wasn't expecting you to grab me like that, otherwise I would have softened your landing a bit."_

" _No it's fine, I'll just go take some pain killers and find something cold to put on it for a bit." She sighs and lowers her hand away from the heated bruise and heads towards the door. "I'm going to get us something to eat." Annie nods silently in response._

 _The rest of the day carried on like normal, with Annie in her cell exercising or resting, and Mikasa sitting outside lost in thought. Later that evening when Mikasa brings Annie something to eat again she finds the blonde sitting cross legged on the floor with her eyes closed looking very peaceful. "Annie, you awake there?"_

 _Annie opens her eyes and looks up at Mikasa, "yeah. It's already that late?" She reaches out for the tray of food that is handed to her. "Thank you." She pokes at the food and eats slowly, noticing that Mikasa is still standing there looking off to the side. "Um, is there something else? Or are you supposed to watch me eat now too?" There's a hint of aggravation in her tone, the questions pulling Mikasa's attention back to her._

" _No there's nothing else. I was just wondering what exactly Hanji will be doing with you tomorrow. They didn't really go over anything with me, so we'll just have to wait and see. Just make sure you get plenty of rest." She glances down at Annie, watching as she downs the last of the food on the tray and then leans back to rest her hands against the floor._

" _With them there's no telling. I know what they did with Sonny and Bean, so I don't expect anything they have in store to be pleasant, I'll do whatever they ask of me though." She sighs and looks back up at Mikasa. "How's your neck?"_

" _Sore, the swelling's gone down though."_

" _Want another massage?" There's a mischievous glint in her eye when she asks and Mikasa's brows draw together as if she is actually considering the idea._

' _There's nothing wrong with a massage right? I really don't want to end up like I did last night though, and what's with that look she's giving me?' After a short moment of thought she agrees to it, "that sounds nice actually." Annie is taken a bit by surprise that she actually agreed but quickly hides her surprise and gets up._

" _So do you want to lay on the floor or the bed?"_

" _What? Why lay down? It's just a neck massage, we can just sit here."_

" _I was going to massage your back too, it's easier if you lay down. Your straps might get in the way though." Mikasa crosses her arms and glances away._

" _I'm not taking them off, you yourself know how much of a pain in the ass it is to take them off and on."_

 _Annie shrugs and gestures to the bed, "suit yourself, at least take your jacket off."_

 _Mikasa rolls her eyes, "fine" she huffs as she walks next to the bed, pulling her scarf and jacket off as she goes, and then tosses them onto the floor out of the way. She glances back to see Annie following a distance behind her stopping a few feet away. She climbs onto the thin mattress and lays flat on her stomach, head resting on her arms and waits for Annie to start._

' _She looks so tense, can't really blame her though. I'm her enemy after all, she can't trust me.' Annie thinks to herself before stretching a bit and then kneels next to the bed. It's low enough to the ground that it puts her at a perfect height over Mikasa. The first light touch of her cool fingers against Mikasa's neck causes her to tense up even more for a moment. After a short pause Annie moves her hands to the outside of the bruise and gently massages the skin, careful not to press into the sensitive discolored patch of skin._

 _Almost immediately Mikasa sighs softly and begins to relax. She'd always known Annie to be a rough person, so to find that she really could have a soft touch is both surprising and calming. Her eyes close and she just enjoys the feeling of long built up tension start to leave her neck, and then what little of her back isn't hidden beneath her gear. 'Maybe I should have taken at least the top half off.' Her thoughts are halted when Annie presses and rubs into a particularly bad knot right next to her spine, a soft grunt escapes her throat and she tenses up a bit._

" _That's a nasty one, I can feel you tensing up so just try to relax, it'll make this easier." She hears Mikasa release a huff before she starts to relax again as she presses into the overworked muscles. Slowly and methodically Annie eases the painful knots out one at a time. 'Damn, how has she been functioning with all of these, has she never let someone give her a massage before' she wonders this to herself while releasing yet another knot._

 _The consistent mix of pain and relief radiating from Mikasa's back has her feeling lighter with each kink that is worked out. Lost in her momentary bliss she sighs aloud without realizing until her ears pick up the sound of a light giggle from Annie. "What are you laughing for back there?"_

" _I know I give good massages, but you sure sound like you are enjoying this an awful lot. For a moment there I thought you were about to start moaning." She tries to keep a straight face, the edges of her lips quivering as she maintains the straight line it's in. Not a moment later Mikasa turns her head further away from Annie's sight to hide the blush that has crept up to her cheeks._

" _It feels nice, I am allowed to enjoy things, and I wasn't moaning. It's just been a while since I had someone even bother giving me one." Annie just hums in amused affirmation before leaning back a bit to be less imposing, leaving one hand just resting over Mikasa's back._

" _I think I've done about all I can, unless you're willing to remove the top half of your gear now, I'm sure your shoulders are equally as bad as your back. Literally one buckle to move it out of the way." Mikasa turns her head back to glance at Annie, eyes scanning her own as if looking for something. She only finds mild amusement and finally agrees to it._

" _Alright, I guess it will be okay," she says as she sits up on her knees and reaches up to the buckle above her breasts. She watches Annie through her periphery as she unbuckles it, the blonde's attention obviously focused on her breasts as they are freed from pressure of the straps allowing them to rest in a more natural position instead of squeezed against each other. 'Is she blushing?' she wonders but tries not to make it obvious that she's watching Annie, instead she shrugs off the shoulder piece of her gear, letting the entire upper portion flop down and hang by the straps of her belt. At that point Annie glances down at the straps and Mikasa makes herself comfortable again on the bed. "There, that work?"_

" _Yeah, that's fine." Now with Mikasa's entire back freed of gear Annie reaches down and resumes her massage. Equal parts tender and rough as she releases all the tension that is left. It takes her a while, working from the well built muscles around her shoulders down to the small of her back where she discovers a particularly sensitive spot that sends a shiver up Mikasa's spine, and she gives off the lightest of gasps. She hopes to herself that Annie didn't notice the reaction, but she did, and just to see it again she discreetly runs her hand over the same spot a few more times earning a similar reaction._

 _Mikasa has her face buried behind her arms, biting on one of her forearms to keep from making the sound again. 'Is she teasing me or does she seriously not realize,' another muffled gasp as Annie's hand passes over it again. She can't see it but Annie has a big grin on her face while she's doing this, and she does know what it's doing to Mikasa._

' _Odd place for an erogenous zone, guess I should stop before she gets pissed off though.' With that Annie stops and again leaves her hands resting on Mikasa's back. "That should be all of it, I can't find anymore bad areas. Come tomorrow you're going to feel amazing." When Mikasa doesn't get up right away she begins to wonder if she passed out again, but she hasn't, instead she's stuck in her own head._

' _Why am I so turned on right now? She definitely did that on purpose. Damn her.' She sighs to herself, 'just calm down. All I need is some fresh air.' After she feels that her blush has calmed down enough she lifts her head and glances back at Annie, a confused expression on the blonde's face._

" _Are you okay? You're looking kind of red, might want to get something to drink." She says with a hint of confusion, even though she knows the reason why._

" _Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Mikasa agrees softly while sitting up, back feeling a thousand times better than it had when she first laid down. She slips her arms through through the straps and pulls the shoulder gear back on, buckling the chest piece again and slides towards the edge of the bed, swinging her legs over. For a moment she sits there, contemplating something in silence while looking down at the floor. Before Annie has time to question what she's doing she faces the blonde with an intense look in her eyes, a look that tells her not to speak. Without any warning Mikasa leans closer to her and places a kiss on her cheek, her lips lingering there for a second longer than necessary before pulling away and standing up. "Thank you, I really feel a lot better now. Good night Annie."_

 _Annie watches on as Mikasa exits the cell, baffled and shocked from the kiss while reaching up to touch the spot where soft lips had touched. A soft smile pulls at her lips as she looks at the now locked door, 'well that was unexpected, maybe I should have teased her a bit longer.'_

 _Outside the door Mikasa sits on her chair confused by her own actions, 'what the hell was that? I just kissed her.' Deciding it's better to just not worry about it and that she just acted naturally to show her thanks for what Annie did for her. 'I should sleep, there's a long day ahead of us.'_

* * *

An hour after leaving the castle and the four arrive at the forest. Its tall looming trees stretching far into the sky, offering good coverage to hide Annie's titan form, and also providing the three scouts plenty of surfaces to use their gear on if necessary. At the center they come across a decent size clearing and it's there that Hanji brings their horse to a stop. One other figure is seated on the ground ahead of them. "Hope we didn't keep you waiting too long" Hanji calls out to Armin.

"I only just got here a few moments ago." He quickly turns his attention to the shifter standing next to Mikasa, a bored scowl on her face. "Annie, it's been a while. Despite everything that's happened until now, I just want to thank you for making this decision. Not everyone will appreciate, or accept it, but I do. I knew you are a good person." She acknowledged his remark with a nod and then glances away.

"I'm doing this for myself, not for anyone's approval," she says softly. Mikasa watches Annie as she gazes away from everyone else until Hanji speaks up.

"Regardless of her reasons she's here now with us and I need to see what she's capable of myself, and how we may utilize her titan form to benefit mankind. First off-"

"Wait!" Sasha shouts waving her arms wildly suddenly, startling everyone and gaining their attention. "We should eat first" she then states with a straight face and a serious tone. The others sigh collectively at the forever hungry woman.

"Really hon, now? You can't wait a bit?" They sigh again at the fiercely determined look on Sasha's face, knowing that she will not back down from the notion. Hanji groans and runs a frustrated hand through their hair, pulling it a bit at the ends before giving in. "Fine! Let's eat and then get things underway. I guess I can at least give you all an idea of what I have in mind while we eat." Armin laughs, not surprised at all from the change of plans and helps Sasha set up the picnic she brought along with her.

Mikasa stays out of the way and remains next to Annie who has been watching the others, her face unreadable. A strong gust of chilly wind breaks through the trees, rustling the leaves high above them causing Annie to look up at them for a moment, her loose bangs swaying about and tickling her face. Her eyes close slowly taking the serene atmosphere in, 'it's been so long since I could just relax like this.' Ice blues gaze up to the sky again, watching as a hawk soars over the clearing. 'I don't deserve this.' Her face scrunches a bit as everything really starts to catch up with her, the killing of so many, the lose of her friends, this false sense of freedom. It isn't long before she feels a tear start to roll down her cheek and mutters to herself, not wanting anyone to see her break down.

Her shoulders start to quiver as she tries to fight the thoughts and emotions off, but they keep coming. "Annie?" the soft voice of Mikasa next to her and the gentle touch of a hand on her shaking shoulder is too much, and without thinking Annie bolts into the dense trees.

"Stop Annie, where are you going?!" Armin watched the whole thing happen, and isn't sure what caused it but he starts to follow her along with Hanji and Sasha, who are also yelling for her, but they get stopped by Mikasa raising up an arm to block their path.

"Don't. She's not going anywhere, if she was she would have just shifted right there. I think she needs a little space, probably. I'll go keep an eye on her, the rest of you stay here. I have a flare if anything happens."

"Are you sure that's wise going after her alone?" Hanji asks with an anxious Sasha next to them.

"I agree with Mikasa. This is the first time Annie has had this much freedom, I wouldn't be surprised if the situation is soaking in now" Armin says while walking back to the partially set up picnic. "We'll save you both some food." With a nod Mikasa takes off in the direction Annie was headed.

Annie huffs as she comes to a stop next to a tree, resting a hand on it and then leaning against it. Tears flowing freely down her cheeks with her face tilted to the sky. 'When was the last time I cried like this?' She opens up her eyes again, vision blurred from the tears. She sniffles and starts sliding down against the tree until she's seated on the ground, unable to stop the onslaught of wave after wave of emotions and buries her face against her knees.

Mikasa was beginning to get worried that she wouldn't find Annie and slows down her pace to listen more carefully, it's then that she picks up the sounds of gasping breaths and sniffles a few yards away. She slows to a walk and quietly peers behind a tree and sees Annie crumpled on the ground. The sight is enough to make it feel as though her heart has dropped into her stomach, making her want to comfort the broken woman. She waits patiently, letting her continue to cry on her own for a bit longer. When it looks like she finally starts to calm down a bit Mikasa softly calls out to her, "Annie."

Her voice falls on deaf ears, Annie is far too deep in her thoughts to notice. Even as Mikasa slowly closes the distance between them until she's right next to her and kneels down. Again she calls her name and places a gentle hand on the blonde's shoulder. She expected Annie would lash out or shove her away, but neither happened, instead she grows silent save for a few sniffles. Mikasa says nothing else, instead opting to sit silently next to her, leaning back against the tree.

Several minutes tick by as they sit there until Annie shifts her head enough to peer at Mikasa through one reddened eye, exposing one tear stained cheek. "Mikasa," her voice comes out broken and almost too silent to hear over the rustling of the leaves above, "I didn't want anyone to see." Mikasa just glances down at her, an apology is clear on her face but she doesn't say anything, her heart shattering more at the sight of the puffy skin around her eye and red face.

She lets a soft sigh escape her as she reaches out, slowly, until her fingertips brush over heated skin. Her thumb lightly swiping over the wet trail down her cheek. "There's nothing wrong with crying Annie, that just means you're human." At that Annie shakes her head, Mikasa pulling her hand back.

"But I'm not," she huffs and sits up, letting her back rest against the tree.

"Being a shifter doesn't make you not human, you're just different." Annie laughs at the comment, the sound is hollow and sends a chill down Mikasa's spine, reminding her of the last time she heard her laugh.

"If that's how you want to think about it, that doesn't make me any less of a monster though." She stands up a moment later, wiping the remnants of her break down away from her face with her sleeve. "We should get headed back before they start a manhunt." Mikasa nods and stops herself from standing when a hand is held out in front of her. She looks up at Annie but the blonde is facing away waiting for her to accept the offer. She raises a brow at the sudden kindness but says nothing while grasping the smaller hand in her own, quickly being pulled up to her feet. The ascent is a bit faster than she had anticipated and finds out too late that her legs had fallen asleep and falls forward against Annie.

She quickly grasps onto her shoulders to stop the momentum almost making them topple over, but Annie's reactions are quick and she steadies them both after gripping onto Mikasa's waist. They look away from each other, both with a light blush but do nothing to break the contact between them. 'What am I doing, I should shove her away' Annie thinks as she tenses up, preparing to do just that, but then a soft sound stops her. 'Is she-... Is she laughing?' Annie turns her gaze to Mikasa, and sure enough her shoulders are bouncing slightly, bringing one hand up to her mouth to try and hide it.

"Why are you laughing? I don't really see how this is funny." Mikasa laughs a little louder, and continues for a moment, not sharing the reason. Finally she calms herself down and wipes a tear from her eye.

"I'm sorry. I just find it funny how clumsy I seem to get around you now." Annie tilts her head at her while she thinks it over, a moment later a slight smirk breaks her stoic expression.

"You kind of are. Maybe you got too comfortable and slacked off with your training for too long." Mikasa hums in agreement before focusing on Annie again. Only now the two realize just how close they are, with Annie's hands still on her waist, and one of her own hands on the blonde's shoulder. Their blushes return but they don't look away from each other, instead they silently studying the others face.

Annie glances away quickly towards the direction they came from, and then back up at the taller woman. Both of their hearts are pounding in their chests now, a mixture of emotions about the situation. 'We should just go back now, but I can't stop looking into her eyes, I don't remember them being such a bright blue.' Mikasa exhales, not realizing she had been holding her breath since Annie looked back at her. 'Is she looking at my lips?' No sooner did she think it when she notices Annie's face is getting closer to her own. Blue eyes closing slowly as she leans in.

Mikasa finds herself frozen, torn between getting away from the situation and just staying there before she ends up with another kiss to question. Her body answers for her as the hand she had resting on Annie's shoulder starts sliding up along her neck, coming to a stop on the side of her face. She hears Annie sigh softly, the sweet sound breaking any remaining resolve to stop this and leans down into the kiss. Small hands circle from her waist to rest high against her back, pulling them closer together.

Their lips press together in the most gentle of kisses. Mikasa brings her free hand up to rest on the small of Annie's back. Both women sigh in content as any tension that had been building up between them is released with the innocent gesture. Neither press for more than the simple kiss, and slowly they pull away. Mikasa strokes

Annie's cheek with her thumb, savoring the adorable gentle smile that is on the blonde's face, the smile is reflected back at her. Annie opens her mouth about to say something when they hear their names being yelled through the forest. They both sigh and roll their eyes at the shrill sound of Sasha's voice in the distance, shortly followed by Armin's. "Looks like we took too long after all."

"Yeah, let's get going. We can... talk about this later." Annie nods before looking in the direction of the voices, both of them pulling away from the warm embrace. Not a moment later Sasha comes soaring through the trees and all but screeches when she spots to two women.

"Mikasa! We were so worried something happened!"

"Calm down nothing happened, see, I'm right here, as is Annie." Sasha lands in front of the pair, eyes checking over Mikasa before letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"Thank goodness, everyone was starting to get worried. And you," she gestures at Annie, "why did you run off like that?" She just shrugs and walks past the brunette. "H-hey!"

"Calm down, I'm heading back now."

"Oh... Mikasa-"

"Let's get back, there's really nothing to make a scene about." Sasha pouts at Mikasa and follows behind her and Annie. Armin runs into them along the way and joins them.

"There you are. Have you got whatever that was out of your system? I need you at your best Annie." Hanji says while watching them walk into the clearing, their arms crossed and looking impatient. "If you're hungry there's still some-"

"Let's just get this over with." Annie cuts them off and stops a few feet away. "Whatever you want to do with me, just do it."

Hanji sighs with a shrug. "Well then, since you're so eager. First, Armin."

"Yes? Do you need me to do something?"

"Not really, but I want you to observe from higher up, in one of the trees. I don't care where."

"Ah, okay sure." He uses his gear to take him up to a high branch on one of the closer trees, giving a thumbs up when he's set.

"Mikasa, I want you down here with me. If something happens to go wrong I'll leave it to you to remove Annie from the titan." Mikasa nods glancing over to Annie who has a passive expression. "Sasha you can stay here with me also, you'll be Mikasa's backup if it's necessary." She nods and moves to stand next to Hanji. "Annie, before I do anything, tell me, how good is your rejuvenation?"

She shrugs lightly. "It's okay I guess. Do you mean while I'm human or titan?"

"Both."

"Well it's slower if I'm not a titan. If I were to lose a limb as a human and then shift the limb will come back immediately."

"I see, so about the same as Eren's. What about shifting, how many times can you shift consecutively before you're drained?"

Annie hums in thought, "about four, maybe five. It really depends how much energy I expend each time. Shifting too many times in a short time frame with no rest between will result in a weaker titan."

"Mm, yes I learned that with Eren. The times and length of holding the form without getting fried inside became shorter and more risky over time." Annie nods.

"You already know that much, so what else is there?"

"What about special abilities? Other than being able to harden parts of your body. What of the scream we bore witness to where you summoned any nearby titans and then were consumed by them. Is it anything like Eren's ability to give commands to them?"

"It's nothing nearly as fancy, it does exactly as you saw. It calls other titans to my location and sends them into a frenzy. I've also used it to lead titans to a location. I can easily outrun them and they'll just keep following until they run out of steam." Hanji keeps nodding, soaking up all of the information.

Mikasa stands there watching on as Hanji asks question after question. Annie clearly looking less and less interested. 'I thought Hanji would have jumped straight to experimenting, at this rate it'll be dark before they get anywhere.'

Several rounds of questions later, "alright, that's enough questions for now. Next I'd like you to shift." Annie's eyes narrow slightly, she knew this part was coming, but even now she feels a sense of uncertainty about it as she raises one hand up to her face, just looking at it as if it were repulsive. "We'll back up to a safe distance. I'm aware that shifting requires a strong sense of purpose and willpower, but I expect you're more than capable of that." Her blue eyes looks over Hanji, Sasha and then stop on Mikasa as the three of them back away a safe distance from the blast radius.

'A strong sense of purpose, do I have that now?' She wonders, gaze still focused on Mikasa until their eyes meet each other. 'I want to make things right, and to live, and...' she closes her eyes, mind focusing on her goals as she brings her hand closer to her lips. 'I'd like to protect her.' Her eyes snap open again as she bares her teeth, quickly sinking them into the side of her thumb. The familiar sting of pain washes over her followed by a buzz of energy as lightning strikes her, a searing heat consuming her body as she shifts.

Mikasa tenses at the sight of muscle and tendons rising high above her. The figure sends chilling memories from her previous encounters with Annie's titan. 'Annie...'

"Good, that went smoothly Annie! Bend down here would you?!" Hanji thrilled with the titan before them calls out to her. For a moment they start to wonder if Annie had heard them because she wasn't moving at all. "Annie, can you hear me?!" Annie moves one her hands, bringing it up to her massive head, an odd grimace on her face as she kneels down.

'Something's not right,' Mikasa thinks to herself as Annie kneels down slowly. Despite the odd behavior Hanji steps closer, throwing all caution to the wind from their excitement.

"You don't look well. Are you in pain?" Annie doesn't speak, but she does offer a slight nod. "Hmm, perhaps it's from not shifting for so long. Can you hold it for a while longer at least?" She nods again, lowering her hand from her head, staring blankly at Hanji with those large eyes. "Good, I'll try to keep things simple this time."

'I don't remember ever getting this hot in here before from just sitting still.' She feels ill inside of the titan, and notices her own vision growing blurry. She struggles to stay focused on what Hanji is saying to her, trying to at least follow their movements below her. Hanji prods and examines her titan form as much as they can.

"I had wanted to remove a limb and watch the regrowth rate myself, but I think I'll hold that off this time. Hmm.." They tap their chin in thought, not wanting to over strain Annie, but not really satisfied with what little had been done that day. "How about a race? Mikasa using her gear against Annie, from here back to the outer edge of the forest."

'Is she really in the condition for that right now?' Mikasa wonders as she looks up to the titan's face. Her expression remains unchanged, cold, empty, and a bit tired. Annie looks to Mikasa before standing up, towering above them all. 'It looks like she's ready to do it.' Mikasa moves to stand next to her and readies the handles of her gear. "We're just racing to the outer edge back towards the castle?"

"Yes, we'll get a head start before you begin and meet you both at the finish line. I want to see the winner for myself. Five minutes should be enough for us to get ready. Armin!" They call out to him and a moment later he swoops down from the tree he had been perched on.

"What's going on? Finished already?"

"Annie isn't doing well so I'm calling it early this time. We're going to the other side of the forest. I'm having Mikasa and Annie race there afterwards, you come with Sasha and me."

"A race? That sounds interesting. It might be a bit tougher for Annie with the dense treeline though, don't you think?"

"Not at all, she'll be more than capable of getting through. Probably." The three of them mount their horses, Sasha taking Mikasa's and the reigns for Annie's to bring them along. "If something happens you have your flair Mikasa."

"Yea, we'll see you on the other side." They ride ahead, disappearing into the forest leaving Mikasa alone with the blonde titan next to her. She looks up at her, feeling the slightest bit unnerved being next to her like this. 'I wonder what it's like inside of a titan like that, probably uncomfortable, and hot.' She catches Annie looking down at her from the corner of her eye. "Annie." She gestures for her to come closer. An odd rumble echoes from Annie's throat as she kneels down, her brows drawn together. She brings a large hand down next to Mikasa with her palm up.

Mikasa steps onto it slowly and hangs onto her thumb for support as she is raised up next to her face. "Can you not talk as a titan at all?" Annie just stares back at her, blinking and then opening her mouth to let out a puff of air. She shakes her head, long blonde hair swaying back and forth. "I'm sure you could if you tried, Eren has gotten pretty good at it, but it did take him a while before it actually sounded like words and not just weird gurgles and groans. Maybe that's something you can learn to do also."

She looks off to the treeline, the others are long gone and probably waiting for them. "We should probably get started before they send Sasha after us again." Annie nods and lowers her hand back to the ground, allowing Mikasa to step off. She walks a safe distance away from the titan and pulls the handles of her gear out again. She takes a deep breath, both of them making eye contact for a moment.

Within a flash they both take off at the same time, Annie bolting full speed, busting through any trees in her way, the sound of her thunderous steps and trees falling fills the air. Mikasa triggers her gear at the same time and is sent flying through the air and into the forest at breakneck speeds. 'It's been so long since I got to really use my gear.' She glances to the side and catches sight of Annie barreling through all the trees, none of them slowing her pace. Mikasa narrows her eyes, looking forward again and focuses on moving as quickly as she can.

She stresses the gas tanks as hard as they'll go, propelling faster, making all the trees become a blur. Finally she spots a bit of sunlight ahead through the trees and focuses on reaching the goal before Annie. She doesn't notice when Annie starts to fall behind.

'Dammit I can't see anything,' Annie thinks while trying to keep herself running in a straight line, the glint of light ahead barely registering. Inside the titan her breath is becoming labored as she tries to stay focused on the spot of light, so much so that she doesn't catch site of one of the much larger trees that she would normally side step and clips it with her side. The tree proves to be more resilient than most and knocks her off balance, sending her falling to the ground with a loud thud that echoes through the trees, 'shit.' She tries to get back up but her titan doesn't respond to her.

Ahead of her Mikasa turns when she stops hearing the sound of Annie running through the trees. Her eyes widen when she doesn't see her anywhere, 'she didn't pass me, where the heck did she go?' She swings herself back around and back tracks a bit looking for her, gasping when she comes across the sight of the fallen titan. 'Did she trip, or collapse?' She quickly lands on top of the nape of her neck and kneels down closer. "Are you okay in there Annie? What happened?"

Inside Annie is burning up and feeling more ill than she had when she first shifted. She barely registers the sound of Mikasa's voice calling to her, feeling faint. She tries to release herself from the titan but it still doesn't respond for her, 'damn.'

"Annie?" Mikasa studies the titan for a moment, seeing how unresponsive it is. "Okay, I'm going to cut you out of there, just hang on." Mikasa readies a pair of blades and quickly slices a chuck of titan flesh out of Annie neck, making sure to miss any vital spots. The first cut reveals the top of her head and carefully she starts to carve more of the tough flesh away, exposing more of the blonde until she's free from her waist up. "Annie!" Still no response so she checks her vitals, ignoring the searing heat that is pouring out at her and finds that Annie is unconscious. "What the hell happened?" Concerned about her fusing further with the titan Mikasa finishes carefully slicing her body out of it, lifting her overheated body into her arms and carrying her clear from the now steaming titan form.

'Can't carry her and use my gear to get us out of here, so it's either go on foot or... right, the flair' She digs into a small pouch attached to her hip and pulls out the flair gun. A moment later there's the sound of it firing and a climbing trail of red smoke reaching just above the trees. 'They should see it and be here soon.' She looks back down at Annie and presses a hand against her forehead. 'Still burning up.' She brushes Annie's bangs off of her face tracing her fingers along her cheek.

It's not long until she hears the others calling out for her and she waves her arm to flag them down, "over here!"

"What happened Mikasa?" Hanji is the first to speak after halting their horse and moves next to her, quickly kneeling down to Annie and checking her over.

"I'm not sure, I lost sight of her for a second and found her collapsed titan, I had to cut her out and she hasn't responded to anything."

"Overheated maybe? She's burning up, and there's still the marks on her face from being attached to the titan. It's happened to Eren before, I'm sure you remember."

"Yes, I do." Mikasa says as Hanji stands up and over to the steaming remains of Annie's titan.

"What a shame..." They sigh scratching the back of their head. "Well always next time. Let's get her back to the castle. She probably just needs more time to rest. Can you ride with her like that on a horse?"

"That shouldn't be a problem." Mikasa kneels down and scoops Annie into her arms, 'she's so light,' she can't help but realize as she carries her to the horse. With Hanji and Sasha's help she gets Annie situated so she's resting against Mikasa's back so she won't slide off. "It'll be slow going, but this should work fine."

Hanji nods and calls Armin over. "I feel like I wasted your day Armin, but you can head back now, we'll handle the rest from here."

"It's no problem, really I don't mind. I will head back though, sorry that things got set back. Let me know anytime if you need anything." He says his goodbyes and heads back to town on his own.

The ride back to the castle is spent mostly in silence, Mikasa occasionally checks and repositions to keep Annie in place. 'She's still so warm, even I'm starting to feel the heat.'

"Hey Mikasa?" Sasha calls for her attention, and has what was Annie's horse steady its pace next to her.

"Yeah?" She looks over to the brunette.

"You know, I've been wondering about something." She suddenly looks timid, and this makes Mikasa worry about what she's getting at.

"Okay, and what's that?"

"Well, about Annie. It's just something I've noticed a little. But you always seem to be extra gentle with her. So, you know, is there something..." She struggles to get the words out, then her face straightens as she takes a deep breath and a slight grin creeps onto her face, sending a chill down Mikasa's spine. "Are you and Annie, ya know, something?"

Mikasa's eyes widen and she shifts uncomfortably on the saddle, almost forgetting Annie is against her back but is reminded as her smaller frame shifts a bit with her, 'shit.' She quickly adjust again, nudging Annie up against her back properly and then turns a glare back at Sasha. "What are you talking about Sasha? If that's a joke I'm not laughing. Why would I feel anything for someone like her?"

Sasha flinches. "I was just curious!" Her flinch turns into a pout and her voice grows quieter, "not that there would be anything wrong with that, I think. I mean, as long as-..."

"Sasha, please. I don't want to talk about it right now." Mikasa nudges her horse into a slightly faster pace and leaves the sulking Sasha behind. A moment later Hanji moves their horse next to Sasha and pokes her shoulder, she looks over to them with a big pout on her face.

"You know, I was thinking the same thing." Hanji says with a gentle smile causing Sasha to chuckle.

"Really?" They both look forward at the image of Annie passed out against Mikasa riding further and further ahead of them. "I still don't trust Annie, but, if she could make Mikasa happy then I wouldn't mind growing to like her too. Do you think someone like Annie could do that?" She looks back at Hanji.

"Hmm, I'm not really sure. I never knew much about Annie before, other than her having a very stand offish personality. But thinking of it now, none of us ever got to know Annie because she never really revealed who she is. I have a feeling that Mikasa actually knows more about her than anyone else."

"You're probably right, I'll just trust in Mikasa's judgment. It would be nice to see her happy though." She reaches over holds one of Hanji's hands.

Ahead of them Mikasa's mind is lost in thought as she focuses on getting her and Annie back. 'I shouldn't have snapped at Sasha like that, it's not her fault I'm confused.' She sighs and glances back at them, noticing just how far ahead she's gotten. She looks down at Annie, her head resting against her shoulder. 'Annie doesn't feel quite as warm at least.' She takes a slow breath looking ahead again, the castle now coming into view. 'We'll be back before dark. I think I'll talk to Hanji when we get there about different rooming arrangements for Annie, I'm tired of that basement.'

When Mikasa gets to the castle she waits on the horse until Hanji and Sasha catch up a few minutes later. "Finally caught up to you. I'll help get her down." Hanji quickly moves over and with Mikasa's help they slide Annie off of the saddle and into their arms. Mikasa leaps off next and takes the sleeping blonde into her arms and they head for the large entry doors.

"Hanji, do you think we could put Annie in one of the normal rooms upstairs?" They raise a brow at her and hum in thought.

"I don't see a problem with that. We could put you both into one of the larger rooms to share, or did you want separate rooms?"

"One room should be fine. It'll make it easier for me." Hanji opens the door and leads the way upstairs, Mikasa following behind making sure she doesn't bump Annie into anything. Sasha is behind her with a soft smile on her face. Two flights of stairs and a long hallway later and Hanji opens up another door to the master room. Tall ceilings, and a separate washroom attached to it. 'The river runs pretty close so getting water here for a bath shouldn't be too difficult,' Mikasa sighs inwardly, 'a bath sounds great right about now.' She looks the room over, realizing it'll need to be cleaned up later, but is happy to see the bed looks sleep worthy at least.

She carries Annie over to the massive bed and lays her down on it before stepping away to let Hanji look her over once more. Sasha walks in a few minutes later with a glass of water, handing it over to Mikasa. "For when she wakes up, and this," she hands a wet rag to Hanji who places it on Annie's forehead.

"There, that's about all I can do for her for now. Have her drink some water when she wakes up, maybe a bath to soak in too at some point." They stand up and move to the door preparing to leave. "I'm going to head back before it gets much later and I'll check back in a few days."

"I'll come back tomorrow Mikasa, to bring you more food and supplies." Sasha adds before saying her goodbye to leave with Hanji.

"Alright, that sounds good. Thank you both." Once they're gone and she's shut in the room she moves next to Annie and pulls the blanket over her. 'This is going to be much better than being holed up downstairs. She looks like she's going to sleep for a while.' She glances to the empty side of the large bed and for a moment considers taking a nap, but decides against it and instead she goes to sit on an armchair nearby. 'I hope she wakes up soon.'

* * *

A/N: Ahhhh, I couldn't find a decent spot to stop... I still feel a bit weird about where it stopped but I had to. This chapter extended far longer than intended because of that, haha. The final bit I didn't edit too much so as always, sorry for any terrible errors. I think the next will be much shorter so I can have it out sooner and will likely contain some fluff, look forward to it, until then. ;)


	8. Recovery

A/N: I'm awful. A lots has happened these past several months that have prevented me from having time and motivation to work on this. I'm so sorry, and thank you everyone for your continued support and patience. But here it is, the long awaited Chapter 8, please enjoy!

* * *

Recap of events thus-far (for those that might need/want a refresher);

Annie now free of her crystal like shell was interrogated and held in the basement of an old re-purposed castle, with Mikasa keeping a constant watch over her. A few awkward exchanges ensue between the young women as old feelings resurface, leading up to them sharing a kiss after Annie has a breakdown just before Hanji's experiment on the shifter. An experiment that took a bad turn when Annie's titan collapsed and she had to be cut free, the cause for the collapse is yet unknown, and she now rests in the lush master room of the castle.

'Well this is different.' This is Annie's first thought when she wakes up the next morning. Groggy she sits up, feeling light headed as she does so. She looks around the large unfamiliar room noting the windows, only partially covered by old drapes allowing some sunlight to filter in. Various pieces of dusty furniture throughout. 'Nice place, I wonder where I am now.' Her eyes find Mikasa's back. She's down on the floor next to a bucket, scrubbing the floor with a rag. She continues watching her clean the floor moving from one side of the room to the other, stopping occasionally to dunk the rag into the bucket and wring it out.

* * *

Finally she stops cleaning for a moment, wiping at her brow and glances back at Annie, eyes growing a bit wider when she sees the blonde is awake. "Annie, you're awake." She tosses the rag she was using down and stands up, brushing off her pants, the knees stained from being on the dirty floor all morning. She walks closer.

"Not long. Where is this?"

"Same place as before. I requested that you be allowed to stay in a normal room with me, I'm tired of that stuffy basement. You have no complaints I hope."

"Not really. A bit fancy for my tastes though." She says while gesturing to the furniture and notices a small door to one side. "Is that a bathroom?"

Mikasa looks over to the door and nods. "Yes it is. There's a basin big enough to bathe in there, and there's even a working water pump for it. There's also a shower stall but it doesn't work. Which reminds me, Hanji suggested you should soak in a bath for a bit and just focus on recovering from the other day." She looks Annie over quickly from where she stands, not noticing any particular signs of her not being well.

"Speaking of yesterday, do you have any idea what happened to you? We were racing one minute, then I found you collapsed and had to cut you out of your titan."

Annie stares at her blankly for a moment as she tries to recall what had happened. "I remember feeling sick the moment I shifted but it wasn't unbearable. Then at some point after our race started my vision started to go out. I saw the light coming from the edge of the forest and then slammed my side into a large tree, then I fell, after that everything went dark."

"Do you know what might have caused that?"

Annie shakes her head. "No, I have no idea. I felt just fine beforehand. Nothing like that has happened before. Maybe my body isn't as ready as I thought." She says this while bringing one hand closer to her face. She stares into the open palm before clenching it into a fist a few times. "Even now I feel fine."

"Hmm, Hanji thinks it was probably just too much too fast, so they'll be back to check up on you in a few days. Which is why you need to try and rest and keep exercising to a minimum for a few days at least. You can move around the room freely, just don't try to leave for now." She picks up the glass of water that was resting on the nightstand and hands it to Annie. "Here, drink up. I'll go start drawing water in for you to have a bath."

Annie takes the offered cup and watches as Mikasa retreats to the bathroom, eyes focusing on the soft sway of her hips until she's out of view, then downs the water. 'Damn that ass of hers,' she thinks while setting the cup aside and then rests her back against the ornate headboard. 'I really don't want to be bed ridden for days, but considering what happened I guess I should at least try and take it easy.' She tries to relax and wait patiently for Mikasa to finish.

In the bathroom Mikasa finishes pumping water into the metal basin and walks out. "Bath is full, but cold. I found some decent sized rocks earlier and tossed them into the fireplace hours ago, they should be plenty hot enough to heat up the water now." She says while crossing the room to a small fireplace.

'I completely overlooked that there is a fireplace in here.' Annie thinks while watching all of Mikasa's movements. "You're really going to a lot of effort for me. At least let me carry the rocks-..."

"No. You are to stay in bed until the bath is ready." Her tone offers little room for argument and she picks up a bucket nearby, and using iron tongs, carefully picks up a few very hot rocks out of the flames. After tossing them into the bucket she easily carries them back to the bathroom, not even glancing at Annie as she does so and dumps them into the water making it sizzle and steam on contact. With an accomplished nod she walks out once again, this time she walks up to the nearest window and opens the curtains to allow more light in. "Give it a few minutes and it should be warm enough for you to sit and relax in there for a bit."

'Damnit Mikasa, stop treating me like I'm some helpless child.' Annie is thankful for the gesture, but is also a bit annoyed that Mikasa thinks she's incapable of doing anything. She keeps her thoughts on that to herself though and looks over to Mikasa, still standing next to the window, the gentle morning rays highlighting her fair complexion and silky black hair. 'She's so gorgeous.' She resists the sudden urge to get up and go wrap her arms around the exotic woman and instead does as she was told and stays in bed for a few moments longer.

Mikasa goes back to scrubbing the floor and Annie decides it's been long enough for the water to become warm. Slowly she gets out of the bed, making sure her balance isn't off, and when she doesn't feel anything out of order walks to the bathroom. "I'm going to get in now." She doesn't take the time to see if Mikasa acknowledges that or not.

She doesn't shut the door all the way, leaving it cracked open and then strips out of her filthy hoodie, pants, and underwear. 'Ugh, I don't have any fresh clothes to wear... whatever.'

She shrugs the thought off and walks to the bath. Not really caring if it's too hot, or cold, she steps right in sighing as the water immediately starts soothing her body. 'A bit hotter than necessary but this feels great.' Her eyes close and she relaxes. 'I can't even remember the last time I got to enjoy a hot bath like this...'

Back in the room Mikasa keeps herself busy cleaning the room, taking advantage of the bed being empty and takes the sheets outside to beat any lingering dust out of them. An hour later and the room is nearly spotless, the bed is made and Annie is nowhere in sight. She looks over to the partially open bathroom door and calls out for her. Upon receiving no response she walks closer and gives a solid knock, "Annie?" Immediately after she hears water splash followed by sputtering and coughs. "You okay in there?"

There's a short pause and the coughs come to a stop. "Y-yea I'm fine. Just fell asleep." Annie splashes some water on her face, noticing how much cooler it's become. "You wouldn't happen to have any clothes I could wear would you? The waters getting cold, and mine are kind of filthy."

"I don't, but I'll see if I can find anything here. Also there should be a towel in there you can use if you want to get out." Mikasa walks over to the old dresser nearby and starts pulling open drawers. 'Well, what do you know, there are some clothes in here.'

While Mikasa sifts through the dresser Annie steps out of the bath, water dripping all over the floor as she reaches for the towel. She dries herself enough to not track water outside the room and then wraps the towel around herself. The blonde walks out like this, finding Mikasa still going through the dresser. She leans against the door frame crossing her arms over her chest.

"Any luck?"

Mikasa glances over at her, taking a brief moment to look over the towel covered woman. Her hair is still wet and clinging to her face and neck, water droplets trailing down her exposed shoulders and collarbone. She blinks herself out of a daze and holds up a few pieces of clothing. "This is all I've found so far. Some underwear, shorts and a long shirt. Think you can manage with these until we can get your clothes cleaned?"

"I'll wear whatever. Anything is better than what I was in." She pulls herself off of the wall and walks over to her, grasping the offered pile of clothes. "Thank you."

"It's not a problem."

Annie walks back towards the bathroom, but with a grin she turns to the bed instead. She tosses the clothes onto it and with her back facing Mikasa pulls the towel off, knowing she is still watching her. She scrubs the towel roughly over her hair for a moment then tosses it to the floor. Reaching over she picks out the underwear and stares at the plain gray material for a moment.

Meanwhile Mikasa has been staring openly at her, face flushed as the blonde stands there nude. She finally realizes she's staring, face reddened, and turns away, picking up the rag she was using to clean and tries to occupy herself. 'No shame at all, or she did that on purpose.' She thinks while cleaning at a spot on the wall that refuses to come out.

Annie laughs quietly to herself as she pulls the clothes on. 'I didn't realize she's so shy.' The situation continues to amuse Annie as she finishes getting dressed. Once she's done she looks over at Mikasa. Then looks at the dark stain on the wall she's been scrubbing at relentlessly. "I have clothes on so you can stop pretending to clean that stain that's obviously not going to come out."

"A little decency wouldn't hurt you know." Mikasa states, turning around to observe the freshly clothed blonde. The long off-white shirt is way too big on her, stopping just above her thighs and hanging off of one shoulder. The black shorts barely reach much further than that, leaving the majority of her well toned legs exposed. 'She looks kind of cute in that. The big shirt makes her look so much smaller than she already is.'

The way Mikasa is looking at her doesn't go unnoticed by Annie. She decides to tease the woman a little more by bending over to pick the towel up, making sure she gets a good view of her ass as she does so. She tosses the towel into the bathroom and flops down on her back onto the clean bed, stretching out across the cool sheets. "This is nice." She mumbles, closing her eyes, only now realizing just how comfortable the bed really is.

"Looks like you're enjoying yourself." Mikasa says after a few moments of watching the lounging woman.

"You could say that." Blue eyes peer over at her. "Want to join me?"

"I'll pass. Sasha is due to come by today, and I'd like to take the time to have a bath myself, before she gets here."

Annie sighs lightly, getting comfy again. "Potato girl? What's she coming here for?"

"Supplies mostly. Since we've arranged this new living situation I'll be remaining here until they deem it possible to re-establish you as a citizen. Normally I would be here for days at a time, and Sasha is the one that would bring me whatever I might need. But since I'm staying here for much longer this time, I needed her to pick up extra supplies for the extended stay."

Annie hums. She flips onto her stomach, still stretched all over the large bed. "I see, so she's your errand girl."

"She's a friend, but you can think of it however you want." Mikasa shrugs and disappears into the bathroom. She prepares a bath for herself, and by the time she's finished and returns to the bedroom Annie is fast asleep. Her mouth is open slightly, curled up on one side right in the middle of the bed. All of the freshly placed blankets now wrapped around her form like a cocoon. 'She always looks so fragile when she's asleep.' She thinks this while moving around the bed, never taking her eyes off of the sleeping face. A small smile pulls at her lips as she continues watching her for a moment, then the slight chill in the air has her walking to the fireplace. She pokes around at the charred wood within to help rekindle the slowly dying flames.

'Once Annie is better, what will happen next I wonder. The survey corp is due to head out in two or three days, I believe, or is it a week? I can't remember. Either way, they'll likely only be gone for a few days if things continue going as well as they have been the last few expeditions. Hanji will continue experimenting on Annie as long as they seem fit, and Annie seems content to go along with whatever gets thrown at her.'

She glances over her shoulder at the still sleeping woman. 'But we still don't know for sure why that happened to Annie yesterday. Will it happen again? Maybe it's possible that she won't be able to effectively use her titan again. Hopefully that's not the case, we could really use her strength.'

Some time passes, the morning turning into afternoon. Annie remains asleep, and Mikasa busies herself with tending the fire and reading a random book from the bookshelf nearby. It wasn't particularly interesting, just some cheesy romance novel that is far too cliche for her taste, but it kept her mind busy at least.

A few hours later there's a knock on the door. Knowing it is probably Sasha she calls for them to come in. Sure enough the brunette pokes her head in, slowly glancing around the room before offering a smile at Mikasa.

"Hey Mikasa. Sorry I'm getting here later than I meant to, Hanji kept throwing extra things at me to pack." As she says this she hefts a large satchel from over her shoulder, it lands on the floor with a thud. "Phew. Extra clothes, rations for a week for you both and various other things." She looks up to Mikasa and then gazes around the room until she spots Annie sleeping on the bed. "Has she not woken up yet?"

"She was awake earlier, had her take a bath, then she went back to bed." Mikasa walks over to Sasha. She picks up the heavy bag with ease and sets it down on top of the sofa next to the fireplace before opening it to sift through the items within. "If she doesn't wake up soon I'll make her so she can eat something." A soft grumble from within the blankets can be heard then, Annie sits up and shifts her eyes to Mikasa, squinting from the sunlight, the blankets sliding down as she moves.

"What's that about making me do something?" Annie says with a yawn and rubs the sleep from her eyes. Both Mikasa and Sasha look at her for a moment, the former's expression softening upon seeing the sleepy eyed blonde. Sasha notices the soft gaze and smiles to herself.

"So, you're finally awake Annie." Sasha breaks the silence. "I brought you ladies some stuff." Annie just blinks at her for a moment.

"Thanks." There's an awkward silence that follows Annie's response until Sasha perks up.

"So, who's hungry?"

When there are no objections the three of them eat together. "I'll be staying here tonight, by the way." Sasha says with a mouthful of bread.

"That's a first. Any particular reason?" Mikasa asks her.

"Just tired and I don't feel like riding back just to come back tomorrow with Hanji." She says while yawning. "I scoped out a decent room down the hall that I can bunk in."

"Makes sense. They're just coming to do a check up I take it." She watches as Sasha stands, stretching as she does so.

"Yup, just a check up." She lets out another yawn and glances to the window. "I didn't realize it was already dark out, think I'll head to bed now. I'll see you two in the morning."

"Good night." Mikasa watches as she leaves then looks towards the bed. Annie hadn't said much while Sasha was with them, not that Mikasa expected anything different, and is even less surprised to see the blonde curled up asleep on the bed again. 'Sleep does sound nice.' She moves over to the bed and gazes down at Annie, then to the empty side of the bed. 'This bed could fit a whole family it's so big.'

She crawls onto it, the old mattress creaking and sinks in just a bit under her weight as she lays down facing away from Annie. The motion and noise not bothering the blonde in the least. It doesn't take long for Mikasa to fall asleep as well.

In the middle of the night Annie wakes up from an unpleasant dream. The darkness of the room slowly gives way as her eyes adjust with the little moonlight shining in from the window and the dying embers from the fireplace. Her eyes focus on the back of the figure sleeping just over an arms length away from her. 'She's actually sleeping tonight. I don't think she did last night at all just so she could keep an eye on me.' She gently reaches towards her, scooting just close enough to allow her fingertips to barely touch the ends of Mikasa's hair. 'I'm glad, I hate for her to lose anymore sleep over me.'

Just as she starts to feel tired again she grins and scoots even closer to Mikasa until she's almost pressed up against her back. She gently places a hand against her back, just light enough to not disturb Mikasa. 'She's so warm,' is her last thought before drifting back to sleep.

At the first rays of sunlight gray eyes slowly open, wincing briefly from the light as her mind wakes up. A warm puff of air against the back of her neck pulls her to full awareness and she looks over her shoulder. She finds Annie asleep right up against her back, her face buried against the back of her neck with only the top of her head poking out from under the blanket. 'Annie. Did she move closer in her sleep?' Another puff of air against her neck sends a shiver down her spine. 'I should probably get up before she wakes up like this.' She moves to scoot off of the bed but doesn't get far when she feels something tugging on her shirt.

She looks behind her to find Annie's hand clenched tightly with a fistful of her shirt in it. Mikasa smiles softly at her. She reaches down and gently rubs her hand over Annie's, it doesn't loosen its hold. She looks at her face, partially obscured by messy blonde hair, her brows drawn together. 'Having a bad dream again?' She wonders as she watches her. Mikasa then feels the urge to reach out to her. Slowly she does so until her fingertips reach the hair covering her face, which she brushes to the side.

Annie stirs, her grasp on Mikasa's shirt loosening enough to allow it to be pulled away. Instead of getting up like she originally planned she lays back down, this time facing Annie. Her eyes still closed although Mikasa suspects that she is actually awake now. "Going to pretend to still be asleep today?" She says softly. A grumble in Annie's throat is her first response, clearly she isn't entirely awake yet.

"Who says I'm pretending?" She says finally, one blue eye opening to peer at her. Almost immediately a light blush covers her pale cheeks as she notices the close proximity of their faces, barely a foot of space between them. "You kept moving around, so of course I would wake up." Mikasa blushes as well. She reaches up and pokes Annie's reddened cheek. This causes Annie's blush to darken while her face takes on a scowl, not really awake enough for this kind of attention, but she tolerates it anyway out of curiosity. 'She's being oddly forward all of a sudden, and so early. Wonder what's going on in her head right now.'

Suddenly Mikasa feels like the spotlight is on her as Annie stares at her with those tired eyes and struggles to pull her thoughts together. "I-… about the other day."

"Hm?" Annie raises an eyebrow.

"About in the forest, when we kissed." Increasingly embarrassed trying to talk about it Mikasa glances away from Annie's intense gaze briefly.

"I was wondering when you would bring that up. What about it?" She encourages her to continue, reaching up and grasping Mikasa's hand that was still awkwardly near her face, pulling it down to rest against the mattress, leaving her hand on top of it. Mikasa looks down at their hands and then back to Annie's face.

"About it. Well I won't keep dodging it, but, I like you Annie. I did back during our trainee days, of course back then I considered my feelings for you to be more out of mutual respect as a rival than anything romantic. But then you kissed me that night and even though I stopped things from going further-… I realized then that I had feelings for you, but that also terrified me." Annie listens carefully to her, eyes analyzing every detail revealed through her expressions and remains patient to hear her out.

"Honestly my feelings were a mess back then, all I really cared about was Eren's well being. My own interests weren't important, so when you did that I didn't know what to do other than push you away. Then I was just confused, I didn't know what you felt, if it was just a sex thing or if it was something else."

"What if it was just a sex thing?"

Mikasa gives it some thought. "Well that wasn't an uncommon thing, plenty of the other troops would engage in such activities. I just never gave it much thought." Annie gives her hand a light squeeze.

"Well," Annie starts, "to be honest it was just a sex thing. I found you attractive and challenging, and taking a chance at forgetting my mission for a while proved far too alluring. So I went for it. Letting myself feel more than that, when I knew that eventually you would see me as only an enemy, I couldn't allow myself to do that. I guess I cared a bit more for you at the time than I realized."

"I see. And what about now?" Mikasa asks, eyes focused intently on Annie's.

"The possibility of obtaining more never really crossed my mind. Considering the circumstances back then." She says this while slowly sliding her hand up along Mikasa's arm. "But then I'm given this opportunity where I might be able to lead a normal life. It's hard to say. I'm still overwhelmed, and don't feel like I deserve to have such a thing. To have anyone care about someone like me. Why would I deserve that?" Her hand comes to a stop over Mikasa's firm bicep, squeezing it before pulling her hand away.

Mikasa doesn't offer a response right away, watching Annie's face, her eyes falling no longer meeting her own. "Yes, you've done some terrible things, but you're trying to make things right. You just as easily could have retaliated and broke out of here, but you didn't. I think that means you deserve to be happy, just like anyone else. We all have made mistakes. So don't sell yourself short. Just keep doing what you can, that's really all anyone can ask for." She brings her hand back up again, placing it beneath Annie's chin and dragging her face up so she'll look at her again, the scowl still there.

A moment later Annie shifts and scoots away from her. "Really? You really think that everyone will forgive what I've done just for agreeing to help out now? That people will actually allow me to even think of living like a normal person of society right next to them? Forgive me for being a skeptic."

Mikasa sits up. "I didn't say everyone would forgive you, why should that even matter? You will be working to help humanity, you don't need anyone's approval. You being happy is no one's business but your own." She tugs the blanket off of Annie and scoots closer. The scowl on the blonde's face deepening when the chilly air takes its place. "You deserve it." She says softly as she leans down, cupping Annie's cheek in her hand and runs her thumb against it. "Really."

Annie's vision goes blurry for a moment, she closes her eyes tightly to fight at the sudden sting in them. The soothing feel of Mikasa's hand on her face calming her. "Why are you so kind towards me?" Her voice cracking slightly as she speaks.

Mikasa smiles softly at her, leaning close enough for their foreheads to touch. "Because I like you, can't that be reason enough?"

Annie stares at her eyes so close to her own, a blush rising to her cheeks. Before she has a chance to respond there's a firm knock on the door, making them both jump and pull away from the other. Mikasa sighs and scoots off of the bed and moves to the door opening it. "Hey Hanji, Sasha." The two follow Mikasa further in.

"We're not interrupting anything are we?" Hanji says with a grin, glancing between the two women as they attempt to hide their matching blushes.

"N-no not at all." Mikasa says quickly. Hanji and Sasha share a skeptical look.

"Hmm, if you say so." At this point Annie has moved to sit on the edge of the bed, looking up to the others. "Anyway, how are you feeling today Annie?" Hanji wastes no time to get the questions rolling.

"I'm fine-… and before you ask, no I don't know what happened when I shifted. I was fine, and then felt sick, then I blacked out." Hanji hums in contemplation at the offered information, crossing their arms as they begin to pace back and forth across the room. Sasha meanwhile decided to make herself comfortable on one of the sofas near the fireplace, Mikasa seated herself across from her, neither offering to make conversation at the moment.

"This is concerning. We have so little knowledge on this kind of thing, even after studying Eren. It seems you two have your own unique quirks and shortcomings. My best theory at this time is that your body, and maybe even your mental state, were just not ready for the stress. Post traumatic stress perhaps from your battles just prior to becoming encased."

Annie looking bored as ever just shrugs and crosses her legs. "Are you suggesting my mind was on the past or that I was scared to shift?"

"Something along those lines, yes. As I understand it, your mental state is important to maintaining the titan form normally." As the two exchange questions and answers Mikasa's gaze never leaves Annie. Most of her focus stays on the blondes face and the ever deepening scowl, but occasionally her eyes trace down to her crossed legs, or more precisely, her exposed thighs. Sasha being observant as she is notices this, a grin tugging at her lips as she watches her friend.

"I won't lie, my mind has relived those final moments countless times. No normal person could come out of a situation like that unscathed. So yes, perhaps my mental state isn't where it needs to be right now." Annie bares her thoughts, hiding nothing and keeps her answers as short but descriptive as possible.

An hour later and several growling stomachs later Hanji decides they've asked enough for now. "Alright, I guess that will do it for now. Everyone should get something to eat. Oh, right, before I forget. Sasha and I will be staying here for a while. I have no pressing matters in the city right now and this will make it easier on myself and Sasha as well." Sasha's eyes widen as this is news to her as well.

"We'll really be staying here?"

Hanji nods and makes way to the door pulling it open and waits for her. "Yup, that is the way of it. Hopefully you don't mind the sudden arrangement." To that Sasha shakes her head and smiles widely.

"Not one bit! I'll finally get to see Mikasa regularly." The young brunette turns her gaze to Mikasa, the smile never leaving her face and she offers a small smile in return.

"I won't mind the extra company." Mikasa says before standing up and stretching.

"Does that mean you won't be having me shift again anytime soon? I imagine you have plenty of other things in mind to do." Annie doesn't offer to stand up from her spot on the bed.

"No, I won't have you shift for now. Perhaps in a week or two we'll try it again, after your body has had more time to adjust. Anyway, food, Sasha come help me unload the supply wagon I brought along with me."

"A wagon filled with food." Sasha thinks out loud and drools a bit following after her partner. "Catch you ladies later." She says before vanishing down the hall in a sprint, Hanji follows behind at a slower pace chuckling.

Mikasa and Annie are left alone again, and with whatever moment they were sharing earlier now ruined, the air is tense between them. "I think I'll go help those two with unloading the supplies Hanji brought. Maybe they brought some eggs and we can have a decent breakfast."

"I'll come help too." Mikasa raises up a hand to halt her. Annie sighs and shrugs, "Okay, not help then. Can I at least spectate? I won't be doing any heavy lifting and breaking my poor body over it." The sarcasm drips from the blondes voice and her eyes roll to emphasize the statement. To this Mikasa looks thoughtful, briefly, and then lowers her hand.

"Alright, that should be acceptable. I'm more than certain you are capable of handling something like lifting boxes or crates, but I'd rather not have to listen to Hanji rant about her precious new titan getting injured or something." Her eyes had focused on Annie's exposed shoulder while she spoke, not meaning to stare and blushes slightly when she catches herself. She coughs lightly into one hand and begins leaving the room. "Let's go then."

Annie laughs to herself, and not caring that she's still wearing the over-sized shirt and shorts, follows after her. She really likes it when Mikasa looks at her like she did just now and has the smallest of hope that she will continue to do so in the future, and maybe even more than just looking.

A/N: Sorry if that's an odd place to stop but I really wanted to go ahead and get this story updated for you all, I'll work extra hard to get the next one out ASAP! 3 Enjoy Season 2 of AoT until then, I know I am. :3


	9. A Date Maybe?

A/N: Annie's recovery continues and finally her and Mikasa get some alone time. They also learn of some surprise guests that will be with them at the castle for a little while.

* * *

The next week passes with little excitement. Annie continues her recovery, regaining her strength through Hanji's so called "physical therapy". Mikasa is never too far away keeping a constant watchful gaze, her expression is usually unreadable but sometimes Annie has spotted a distinct look of concern when she would start showing signs of burning out.

Aside from during therapy, when sharing meals together, or when Sasha made them be more sociable with the group, Hanji kept to themselves reading or writing who knows what. Sasha on the other hand has also been not far away, usually hanging around Mikasa when she wasn't dragging Hanji around. Annie's nightmares have become less frequent in this passing week as well, the horrific images of a raging Eren chasing her down weren't nearly as terrifying as they once had been.

Annie's eyes open, slowly adjusting to the darkness. Waking at this time of night has become routine for her and she takes a deep breath. The air is a comfortable mix of warm and cool this night, warm enough that they left the large window open to allow the breeze in. Her eyes focus on the fluttering curtains a few feet away.

A heavy breath behind her draws Annie's attention and she tilts her head far enough to see Mikasa's face, her eyes closed as she sleeps soundly. Neither of them have brought up the morning from a week ago, or anything prior to that, and Annie wasn't going to be the one to mention it. 'Even if I'd like to, but I'll leave that all up to her.' She thinks to herself then flips over so her whole body is facing Mikasa.

Another thing that Annie has become accustomed to doing is scooting closer to Mikasa when she does wake up this late. Sleeping closer to the other woman always seems to lull her into an sense of comfort and she'd sleep peacefully through the rest of the night. Mikasa being a heavy sleeper as she is never seemed to respond or notice when Annie would scoot close and curl against her, not until she'd wake up and find the blonde like that. That would not be the case tonight however, because as soon as Annie moved closer and wiggled into a comfortable position with her head resting just shy of Mikasa's chest she feels an arm wrap around her waist.

Annie's eyes widen at the sudden contact and she looks up to find Mikasa's eyes still closed, unsure if she is awake or still asleep. A moment passes and nothing else happens, Annie releases a breath she didn't realize she was holding and she relaxes again. She smiles softly and is soon pulled back to sleep from the comforting embrace and slow breaths brushing over her head.

When morning comes and the first rays of sunlight shine in through the open window Mikasa is the first to wake, as usual. She's not surprised to find Annie practically on top of her, as that has quickly become a normal occurrence, what does surprise her is how her own arm is situated so casually over the smaller woman. Unsure if she did it herself or if Annie positioned her that way Mikasa gazes down at the top of Annie's head. She finds herself in no rush to remove her arm or get out of bed quickly as she has been doing all week, making sure she was up and about before Annie even woke up in order to avoid any awkward moments.

But today seems different and she doesn't want to break the moment. There are no plans for therapy today, no experiments, nothing from Hanji as they decided everyone should do as they please for the day and unwind. With that thought in mind Mikasa allows herself to relax again, adjusting her arm draped over Annie's waist just slightly. Storm gray eyes still focused on the blonde locks before her, loose and in disarray. The messiness brings a smile to Mikasa's lips and without realizing it soon finds her fingers tenderly running through the silky strands.

'She must be using the conditioner Sasha brought, her hair is so soft.' She thinks to herself, not bothering to stop, but also being very careful not to disturb Annie. She isn't sure how much time passes while she's like this, nor does she realize she had started to fall back to sleep. That is until Annie begins to stir and rolls onto her back, her farthest arm stretching up above her head and mouth hangs open slightly with hair splaying all over the place. The motion nearly pulls Mikasa on top of Annie and wakes her back up.

Mikasa blushes as she now finds the tip of her nose brushing against Annie's ear. She begins to panic when Annie starts to mumble in her sleep, nothing coherent, but still she doesn't know what to do should she wake up right now. She releases her breath slowly when Annie finally stops mumbling. It is then that Mikasa makes to move herself a bit further away, just enough to give herself breathing room.

She laughs lightly to herself moments later as she watches Annie sleep, a small trail of drool running down her cheek from her open mouth. 'Such a messy sleeper.' She thinks as she reaches up to swipe the drool away with the back of her hand. Mikasa takes a moment to look at the window and decides it's probably around 9a.m. at that point, 'Should probably get up soon.'

As her eyes focus back down onto Annie she finds blue eyes staring back up at her. Mikasa blinks at her, feeling nervous now. "D-didn't realize you were awake."

"Just now." Annie says nonchalantly before she yawns and stretches. "You usually enjoy watching other people sleep?" Mikasa blushes at the question and shakes her head glancing away.

"It's not something that happens, not like I sleep with other people…" she mutters. Annie laughs softly at the response and sits up, her over-sized shirt sliding down one shoulder like it usually does when she moves.

"We aren't doing anything today right?" Annie asks, glancing over her bare shoulder at Mikasa, still blushing at her. She seems to pop out of a daze when Annie's words reach her ears.

"Oh, no, Hanji wants everyone to do their own things today. I hadn't really given it much thought." Mikasa drags her eyes away from Annie's shoulder to look her in the eyes. "Is there something you'd like to do? Other than sleep all day."

Annie laughs gently and shakes her head. "I actually don't want to be in bed all day. What could I do though, not like I can just go out for a casual stroll or something."

Mikasa frowns at that and hums to herself, rolling ideas through her mind, her blush returning as one in particular passes through. "We could… maybe… go out together." The statement comes out as a whisper.

"Could what?" Annie asks with a smirk as she was able to make out what Mikasa said, but wanted to hear her say it louder.

"We could go out, you and me, I mean. I don't think I can take you into town yet but… maybe a horse ride… there is a lake not far away." Mikasa's blush continues to darken as she speaks, trying not to stumble over her words. Annie remains patient and waits for Mikasa to finish getting her thought out before tilting her head slightly.

"Sure, that sounds nice to just get away from potato girl and the mad scientist for a while." She smiles slightly at Mikasa before turning away and crawls out of the bed, knowing that the woman would get a view of the panties she's wearing.

Mikasa looks away as soon as she catches sight of the black undies, her cheeks now burning. She scoots to the other side of the bed and goes about getting dressed while Annie disappears into the bathroom.

An hour later and the two exit the castle grounds on horseback. A pack slung over Mikasa's shoulder with food for later, and while she didn't feel it would be necessary but was urged to by Hanji, she also wears her gear. 'I can't blame them for continuing to be cautious.' She thinks as she glances at Annie next to her. She's wearing her old hoodie and pants today, and hasn't said anything else since they got up. 'Not everyone is like me… falling for someone that was our enemy.' Annie looks at her when she notices Mikasa staring at her for longer than necessary, a blonde brow raising at her.

"Something the matter?" She asks, leading her horse to ride a little closer to Mikasa's.

"N-no, everything's fine. Just have a lot on my mind right now." Mikasa shakes her head and focuses ahead of them, noticing they are nearing the forest where the lake is located. "We'll be there soon, let's go." She says before urging her horse to run faster. Annie sighs softly then does the same.

They make their way through the dense trees in silence until the lake comes into view in a large clearing. The two slow down and Mikasa leads the way to a large tree right next to the waters edge. "This spot looks fine, we'll have good shade here." Mikasa says then leaps down from her horse. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a handful of chopped up carrots and feeds them to the horse while patting its muzzle.

Annie does the same, rewarding the horse for the ride and then walks over to the edge of the lake, the water is pristine and crystal clear. "This is a nice place. Is this some kind of tourist location?" She turns to face Mikasa just as she is placing her pack on the ground. Mikasa sits down next to it and looks over to Annie, shaking her head.

"Not that I'm aware of, but I don't know for sure. Even if it is, it's not really the season that most people do that kind of thing, so I doubt anyone else will come out here."

"I see, probably for the best." Annie takes a seat on the ground several feet away from Mikasa.

"Worried about bumping into people?"

"Not particularly, but it's something I'd rather avoid for now. Dealing with people, let alone angry ones, isn't something I enjoy." Mikasa nods solemnly then reaches into her pack, pulling out a couple of sandwiches.

"Understandable, it would be a mess if someone that recognizes you saw you, I don't think anyone is ready to handle that situation right now. But for now let's not worry about that. Here." Mikasa hands one of the sandwiches to Annie. The blonde inspects what's inside, a few thin slices of beef, cheese and lettuce.

"Did potato girl make these?" She asks before taking a bite, the taste is simple enough, not that she's a picky eater anyway.

"Yes, she was already preparing some food when I went to get something for us. Does it taste okay?" She watches as Annie chews the bite she took.

"Hmm, a little on the dry side, but it's not awful. You won't find me complaining about food, it's fine enough just having some." She takes another bite, Mikasa hums quietly as she looks down at her own sandwich.

"I can relate to not being picky. Is there something you like in particular though, some kind of favorite?" She takes a small bite from the sandwich, mentally agreeing that it is certainly a bit dry.

Annie rests her weight back on one hand, holding the rest of her sandwich over her lap as she looks up to the sky obscured by branches and the few leaves that have budded early. "Not really. I've never lived a normal life, so regular or even tasteful meals haven't been a thing for me. When I lived with my father we had mostly grains, berries, and whatever little meat he could hunt. He also grew some vegetables but he wasn't a very creative cook with any of it, and I was too young at the time to help."

"I see." Mikasa didn't know what else to say and feels bad about bringing up old memories. "Sorry, it wasn't my intent to pry into your past." Annie shrugs it off.

"Don't worry about it, doesn't really bother me. You can ask whatever you want." The dead tone in Annie's voice sends a chill up Mikasa's spine and she frowns, feeling even less inspired to ask anything else. She stares at Annie for a moment in silence, watching as a gentle breeze sweeps at the blonde's fringe. She grins when Annie brings her sandwich to her mouth. She's not sure why but she giggles to herself when Annie takes a large bite, making her cheeks puff out just a bit.

In response to the laughter Annie gives Mikasa a sidelong glare while she chews. Annie then rolls her eyes and finishes off the sandwich before stretching. "So, what about you?"

"Hmm?" Mikasa looks at her in question while setting down the remainder of her own sandwich, her appetite having left her.

"Favorite foods, do you have one?"

"Ah, well, I've always enjoyed grilled trout, preferably with rice and lemon." Mikasa's eyes close as she reminisces on the distant past, of her days living with her parents, before their untimely deaths. "My mother would sometimes prepare it when I was a child, before I met Eren. It's been so long since then."

Annie notices the distant gaze in Mikasa's eyes as she looks at her. "Fish huh, sounds pretty good. Have you ever prepared it yourself?"

Annie's voice pulls Mikasa from her reverie and shakes her head. "No, I haven't. I only provided a little assistance when she would make it, but I probably could if I wanted to." Her eyes catch Annie's, there's something unusually soft about the blonde's gaze in that moment, something she can't quite place but still feels her heart skip a beat. "Would you-… maybe sometime I could make it for you, if you would like that is." Mikasa adds quietly.

"I wouldn't mind that at all, I'm sure anything you make would be good." Annie replies with a smile and watches as Mikasa's cheeks light up. It's then that she notices a crumb on Mikasa's chin. She leans forward with one hand on the ground to support her as the others reaches towards Mikasa's face. "You have something there." She says softly as she plucks the crumb away.

Mikasa is holding her breath, suddenly nervous from the closeness. As Annie's hand recedes with the crumb in tow she finds herself focused on Annie's lips and the subtle smile that has yet to fade. A moment later and those soft lips are suddenly brushing over her own, stormy eyes widen in surprise from the faint touch that isn't quite a kiss but is close enough to entice her to close the remaining distance.

It's the first kiss they've shared while being completely alone, and with no chance of anyone interrupting the moment. They both realize this and take their time to just enjoy the feeling, Annie even scoots closer to make it more comfortable, not letting their lips separate as she moves.

Mikasa presses further into the kiss bringing a hand up to Annie's cheek, her thumb stroking against the soft skin. Her mind is screaming at her to slow down but she allows the tip of her tongue to brush over Annie's lips. A faint sound emits from the blonde's throat and both their blushes darken. Annie allows the prodding tongue to slide between her lips and soon both their tongues are engaged in a slow dance around the others.

Annie is nervous about where she places her hands, at first they just rest on her own lap then move to hover close to Mikasa's thighs and finally they come to rest up on the taller woman's shoulders. An arm almost immediately wraps around Annie's waist, she gasps in surprise when she's pulled entirely onto Mikasa's lap, straddling her.

Annie's grasp on Mikasa's shoulders tighten as the kiss is deepened with that arm pulling Annie closer against herself. She fights with herself to hold back the urge to just shove Mikasa down onto her back and take her. Her hands ball the fabric of Mikasa's jacket into her quivering fists, still she doesn't let herself do it, even as it feels like Mikasa is going to kiss her until she melts.

A long moment later and finally their lips part, a thin string of saliva breaking between them. Both take a moment to catch their breath, foreheads resting against each others. Soon after their eyes open and meet, Mikasa smiles and laughs nervously feeling a little embarrassed. "Sorry, I got a little more into the moment than I realized."

"Why apologize? If it's something you want, I won't complain." Mikasa blushes again and chews on her lip while glancing away from the blonde on her lap.

"I just didn't want to push things too fast, is all."

"Too fast." Annie echoes the phrase and giggles. "I understand. I don't mind either way, but I'll go at whatever pace you set."

In that moment Mikasa wants to bury her face in her scarf to hide from the overwhelming embarrassment she feels. "J-just going to go along with what I do then." Annie nods, a grin still on her lips as she watches Mikasa struggle to keep eye contact.

"I mean unless you want me to take more initiative, well, other than just kissing you because you were staring so intently at my lips." Annie says slowly, leaning close enough to bump her nose against Mikasa's. Mikasa on the other hand feels like she's about to overheat, unable to process anything until Annie pulls away.

"You could-… I mean," Mikasa shakes her head trying to regain her composure, "this isn't about just me, so… you can…" Mikasa's voice grows quieter as she speaks, Annie blinks at her and then nods in understanding.

"True. I'll keep that in mind then. For now though," Annie places a chaste kiss on Mikasa's lips before standing up, stretching as she does so, "there's no rush, right?" Annie looks over her shoulder back at Mikasa with a small smile, trying to reassure her.

Mikasa relaxes upon hearing this and returns the smile. "No, no rush at all. I'm just glad." Mikasa pauses a bit longer than necessary and Annie raises a brow at her.

"Glad about what? That I'm not going to push you to have sex?" She laughs lightly when Mikasa scowls at her.

"What, n-no, that's not what I meant, I mean-… That we're having this chance to get to know each other better, and everything." Her scowl fades into a softer expression, of fondness, a face that Annie had only ever seen Mikasa make towards Eren, and occasionally Armin.

Annie takes a moment to absorb everything that just transpired, everything that has been said and turns her gaze to the clear waters. "To be honest, this is all still surreal to me, that any of this is even happening. But, I'm thankful too." Her eyes close as she enjoys the gentle breeze.

She hears Mikasa as she stands up behind her and looks back at her again. "Anyway, the sun will start setting soon, anything else we should do while we're here before heading back?"

Mikasa rubs the back of her neck and gives the question some thought while glancing around the area. "Unfortunately it's a bit too cool to go for a swim right now, so maybe a walk perhaps?"

"Sure, some exercise sounds nice." She reaches over and grasps Mikasa's hand in hers then waits for her to decide which way to walk. It takes Mikasa a moment to get over the fact that Annie just took her hand suddenly, but shakes the surprise off and smiles at her before leading the way, tugging gently on the smaller hand now clasped in her own.

Aside from the chatter of birds chirping and various other natural sounds the walk is made in silence, but neither of them feel uncomfortable, their hands never leave the others even after their palms become a little sweaty. By the time they return to their horses the sun is already dipping below the horizon, and with how dense the tree cover is there it's gotten quite dark. "I'm surprised potato girl hasn't come flying through the trees to make sure everything's alright." Annie says as she mounts her horse.

"Sasha can be worrisome but she has good instincts. I think she feels like you can be trusted, so I wouldn't expect her to keep an eye on you like that."

"Can I be trusted?" Annie asks beneath her breath as she rides her horse next to Mikasa, who didn't quite catch what Annie had muttered.

"Did you say something?"

"No, it's nothing." Mikasa raises a brow at Annie's response but leaves it at that. "Thank you though."

"What for?"

"Today, this was nice. I think I could get used to days like this." Annie says softly, but loud enough for Mikasa to hear and enjoys the light blush on her companions cheeks.

"I enjoyed it too, and I'm sure we'll have plenty more to come." They share a smile as they continue on their way.

They return to the castle a while later and are greeted by Sasha and Hanji at the entrance. "It's about time you two got back, we were starting to think you'd lost your way or something." Hanji says as they approach the stables.

"There was nothing to be concerned about, we just took a little longer than intended." Mikasa assures them while stabling the horses, it's then she notices there is one more than there was earlier. "Is someone else here? I don't remember there being a white steed here when we left."

"Oho, you noticed huh. Actually yes, we have two guests here for a few days." Hanji gestures over their shoulder towards the castle.

"Who is-…"

"Oi oi Mikasa, it's about time you showed up. It's rude to make your guests wait around ya know." The strong tomboyish voice clicks instantly in Mikasa's head as she looks towards the front door and finds the owner of said voice is none other than Ymir. She hadn't seem Ymir in a long time, a couple years at least. "Historia is here too of course, but she was so tired when we got here so she's already asleep."

She joins the group next to the stables and eyes Mikasa for a moment, and then glances around until she spots Annie a few feet away, who seems to be ignoring the group on purpose while petting a horse's muzzle. "There she is, man Annie you could at least pretend to be social for once. Or are you embarrassed because of that colossal nose of yours?"

Despite her efforts to rile Annie up for a response the blonde only gazes over her shoulder at Ymir, scowl in place. "Your flat chest is just offensive as your attitude, same as always I see." This is the only thing Annie says before moving towards the group to stand next to Mikasa. How she hated interacting with others, and Ymir especially was always insufferable to be around.

Sasha chokes on a snort at the rude exchange between the two while trying not to laugh. Hanji just shrugs and sighs at their antics.

"Keep it civil you two, as much as I would love to see two titan shifters battle it out with each other, I'm afraid right now isn't the time, or the place. Especially with our little Queen so close by, hmm?" Hanji says with their arms crossed, daring either to say otherwise.

"Heh, I wasn't trying to start anything calm your tits. Seriously though, Annie really is back from the dead. I'll have to get you to teach me that one."

"Wait, what do you mean two shifters? And what's this about a Queen?" Annie just now catches onto Hanji's comment and what Ymir is saying. "Don't tell me that Ymir is also a-…"

"Yup I'm just like you blondie, I can change into a titan." The news is shocking to Annie and she isn't sure what to make of this. She looks Ymir up and down, straining her neck when she focuses on her face.

"And this Queen thing? There's no way that you are." Annie says in a flat tone.

"Actually," Mikasa chimes in, "Not Ymir, but Historia is the Queen now." Annie's confused expression is enough to tell Mikasa that she doesn't know who she's talking about. "Oh right, you wouldn't know her real name, you knew her as Christa. Turned out she was descended from royal blood, and is now our Queen."

At this point Annie is beyond shocked as she absorbs this information. 'So much has happened while I was in that crystal, this is just ridiculous. What else have I missed out on that I don't know of?'

"Annie?" Upon hearing her name Annie snaps out of her thoughts and focuses on Mikasa, her face showing concern for her.

"I'm fine, this is all just really bizarre, I guess."

The gentle tone in Mikasa's voice and the soft look in her eyes as she communicates with Annie doesn't get past Ymir, but before she has a chance to bring it up Hanji chimes in. "Alright everyone, let's call it a day." Everyone turns their attention to them. "I know we were going to wait another week Annie but, do you think you might be ready to attempt shifting again tomorrow? With Ymir here I want to try some things, I've already talked it over with Christa as well. But really it comes down to you."

For a minute Annie doesn't reply, instead stands there looking zoned out. Mikasa, unsure how she feels about the sudden arrangement herself, nudges at Annie's hand. This grabs her attention again and Annie shrugs. "Fine, I'll go along with whatever." With that Annie pushes past the rest of the group and goes inside.

"What's her problem?" Ymir asks to no one in particular. Mikasa follows after Annie a moment later.

"Um… well, she did just learn a lot of new things so, maybe she just wants to be alone." Sasha says quietly watching her friend vanish inside behind the blonde. "I can't even imagine how she must feel right now."

"Right. Hey, I have another question before you two go to bed." Ymir says just before Sasha and Hanji go in as well. "Those two, are they, you know… banging or something?" Her question makes Sasha giggle and Hanji can only shrug.

"I'm not so sure about that, they do seem to have gotten close though. If you want a better answer than that then you'll just have to ask them yourself." Sasha replies before tugging on Hanji's arm and drags them in. Ymir just sighs and shrugs it off, deciding that she will ask about it later.

Inside Mikasa makes her way upstairs to the bedroom and nudges the slightly ajar door open letting herself in. Unsurprisingly she finds Annie already curled up into a ball under the blankets. She also notices that the fireplace already has a small flame burning inside warming the open space. Mikasa approaches the bed, shedding her gear and outer wear in exchange for a long shirt before taking a seat on the edge opposite of Annie.

Mikasa looks down to where Annie's head pokes out from the blankets and gently reaches over to lightly run her fingers through a few loose strands. Annie shifts under the blankets and pulls the blanket down just far enough to look sleepily up at Mikasa. "Sorry, I didn't wake you up did I? You went to bed so fast. I just, wanted to make sure you're feeling okay."

"I wasn't asleep yet, and I'm fine, just a bit tired. Then there's the whole thing with Ymir and Chris-… Historia. Never mind, I don't want to think about any of that right now." Annie sighs then suddenly grabs Mikasa's arm and pulls her under the blankets with her. The swift action causes Mikasa to gasp in surprise and then blushes at their sudden closeness, noses almost touching. They stay this way for a few minutes, just gazing into the others eyes, the only light in the room coming from the flame.

Mikasa smiles at her when Annie's eyelids begin to droop. She presses closer and places a soft kiss against the blonde's lips, who rouses enough to return the gesture. When their lips separate Annie buries her face against Mikasa's neck and, after Mikasa wraps an arm around her, Annie falls asleep with the other following shortly after.

* * *

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed that little bit of fluff here and there, I'm trying to continue easing them into things to make it more natural, to me anyway. Also I have con in a few weeks which means it's cosplay crunch time as I scramble with final preparations for that. I'll try my best to get the next update out for you all as soon as I can. With AoT Season 2 popping out I can at least say that my motivation for this has returned with it. Any who 3's Until next time!


	10. Tests Round 2

**Chapter 10 Tests Round 2**

A/N: Annie shifts and once again things just aren't quite right for the blonde titan.

* * *

Early the next morning the group is congregating around the stables as they wait for Ymir and Historia to join them. Annie leans against a beam still half asleep with her arms crossed over her chest. Mikasa, Sasha and Hanji are busying themselves with preparing enough horses for them, only four in all. Hanji and Sasha would ride separate. Ymir and Historia would ride double, and considering the events that transpired the last time Annie shifted it was decided that she should just share a horse with Mikasa.

Hanji is starting to become impatient with the late pair when finally they hear footsteps approaching them. They look up to find a sleepy eyed Historia followed very closely by Ymir. "Ah good morning, good of you two to finally join us. We've already got everything ready to go." Hanji says with a slight courteous bow for Historia, to which the small blonde blushes and sighs.

"Please don't bow for me, it's weird enough that other people do it, but you all are my friends, so please." Historia really hates the formality that comes with being a Queen, and while she has always done her best to endure it in public, she didn't want to think about any of that while on her short break.

"Right right your Highness, I forgot." Hanji says with a laugh while Historia pouts at her.

"Now you're just teasing me, it's just Historia okay." She says with a cute little huff, her disdain soon washes away when Ymir wraps an arm around her shoulders. She smiles and looks up at her much taller girlfriend, although Historia has grown a few inches in the past few years, she's still dwarfed when next to Ymir with the top of her head barely reaching the bottom of the brunette's neck.

As Historia looks up at Ymir she notices that her girlfriend's eyes are not on her and instead follows her gaze over to where Mikasa is standing next to Annie. Mikasa is currently eyeing Annie's face with an exasperated expression as she tugs at the side of her hoodie waking her up. Annie on the other hand has a bored look as she pulls away from the beam she had been napping against.

When Annie finally looks up her eyes meet with Historia's, an action that Annie immediately regrets as the other blonde's eyes begin to water. Historia breaks away from Ymir's hold and walks hastily over to her, stopping just a few feet away. "Annie, I'm happy to see you're awake, you look well. Um.. they didn't do anything too terrible when you woke up, did they?"

Annie just stares at her confused by her show of concern as Historia takes her hands while she asks questions. "No, they didn't. For everything that I did, I've been treated better than I deserve."

"That's not true! I always had my doubts about your actions. I wanted to keep believing that you weren't truly acting of your own will, and I held onto hope that when the day came when you came back that you would do what you can to make amends." Historia wipes at the tears on her face after her little emotional outburst. "I'm glad to see I was right to keep up hope."

Annie feels overwhelmed and knows everyone's eye are on her as she shifts nervously from one foot to the other. "Y-yeah, I'll do what I can."

Historia smiles sweetly at her, that angelic face could melt anyone's heart, and even Annie finds herself offering a small smile back. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make a scene and I'm holding everyone up." Historia apologizes and walks towards the white steed nearby where Ymir is waiting for her.

"Right, enough delay then. Let's make our way to the forest of giant trees nearby and get things underway." Hanji calls out, wasting no time to climb on their horse and move over to the gate. The others follow suit with Historia sitting side-saddle in front of Ymir, and Annie being the last to climb onto a horse behind Mikasa. She sighs and wraps her arms around Mikasa's waist, this morning has already been off to a crazy start and she is not looking forward to the rest of it.

Mikasa keeps her horse behind the rest of the group to give Annie space away from everyone else, thankful that Ymir hasn't tried to get a rise out of the blonde yet. Annie's face is buried against her back as her arms cling to the from of her shirt. "You smell nice." Annie says absently, her sleepy voice muffled against Mikasa's jacket but she hears her well enough to blush. She reaches one hand down and rests it over Annie's, squeezing it.

They arrive at the same clearing in the large forest as the last experiment. Before Hanji has a chance to say anything Sasha is already setting out some snacks she brought along. "Sasha…"

"Hmm?" She mumbles around a piece of bread in her mouth. "What? Everyone should eat and have their energy up." Hanji throws their arms up in the air in defeat, knowing their girlfriend would fight them to the death about eating.

"Fine fine, everyone go eat, THEN we'll get started." Hanji huffs and pulls out a tiny notebook then begins scrawling something into it. Sasha grins in triumph as she motions for the others to join her.

"Oh my, this all looks delightful, did you prepare everything yourself Sasha?" Historia asks as she takes a seat on the grass and observes the spread of food set out. Ymir sits behind her and scoops her onto her lap, resting her chin on top of Historia's head.

"Yup, I hope it tastes okay, and feel free to eat as much as you want, I brought plenty."

Mikasa takes a seat nearby snagging a bread roll and glances over at Annie who still stands several feet away from the group.

"Too good to join the rest of us down here Annie?" Ymir speaks up, watching the blonde from the corner of her eye. The comment clearly irritates Annie as she pretends she didn't hear her at all and looks off towards the treeline.

"Ymir please don't be a jerk." Historia says as she pinches Ymir's thigh.

"I'm not, but she could at least try to be less awkward." Annie sighs and rolls her eyes as she moves to sit as far away from Ymir as possible, but noticeably close to Mikasa.

"How about shutting up, I was going to sit down when I felt like it." Ymir snorts at the response before getting elbowed in the side by Historia. She grumbles slightly but refrains from saying anything else while everyone eats.

"So what I'd like to see today is Annie shift, first and foremost. If there are no issues then Ymir will shift. Then I'll have you both perform some tasks simultaneously, nothing too complex or difficult." Hanji says after everyone finishes eating. Sasha goes about cleaning up and casually eating any leftovers while Mikasa watches on in concern as Annie and Ymir are given a run down for what they'll be doing.

The two shifters make their way toward the center of the open field surrounded by giant trees. Ymir stares at Annie next to her as they walk away from everyone else, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "So, I've been wanting to ask, what's it like to fuck someone like Mikasa?" She asks with a grin that widens as the crease between Annie's brows deepens with her scowl.

"I wouldn't know. If you're so curious then why don't you go fuck her yourself." Annie's voice stabs like daggers dripping with poison and Ymir takes it in stride with a snort.

"Heh, I'm perfectly content with my Historia. I just can't imagine the two of you banging and surviving, I mean, you're both pretty strong and kind of aggressive. Probably more like an erotic wrestling match to the death." Ymir laughs at the mental image, calming down a moment later and sighing at Annie's unwavering scowl. "I'm just fucking with you damn, lighten up Annie."

Annie rolls her eyes and says, "I'll lighten up when we're done here and I don't have to hear your voice anymore," then comes to a stop glancing over her shoulder back at the others. Her gaze lingers on Mikasa for a moment longer, their eyes meeting. Mikasa offers a small smile before Annie closes her eyes and brings her hand up to her lips. 'I should remember ask if they'll give my ring back sometime.' Annie thinks to herself before biting into her flesh. 'This will work out this time,' she barely has time to grunt from the pain when she is encased in the expanding warmth as her titan forms around her.

Ymir jumps back at the sudden transformation, Annie didn't give her any warning that she was about to and soon finds herself looking up to the fourteen meter tall tower of muscle and sinew. "Damn give a girl some warning next time would ya!" Ymir yells at her, unsure if she even heard her until Annie's head swivels slightly to look down at her.

Inside the female titan Annie gives herself an evaluation. 'I feel better compared to last time, still hotter than it should be, but still within a manageable range. I should be able to make it through what Hanji wanted for today at least.' After giving herself a long moment to adjust she gives Hanji the go ahead signal, a simple thumbs up from her titan.

Hanji nods with a smile and gives Ymir a wave and shouts for her to shift whenever. Unlike Annie, Ymir wasn't willing to bite herself and pulls out a concealed knife she wears tucked in her boot. "Here goes." She quickly slides the blade against her palm and after the flash of lightning recedes she squats down into a comfortable position for her much smaller titan of only five meters.

Hanji rides over to them on a horse when it's safe and gives both titan forms a looking over. They jot down a few comparative notes about the two of them before reaffirming the tasks they wanted them to perform. Tasks like finding something Hanji hid in the forest at some point previously, stress tests, racing each other, and ending it with them sparring. So long as Annie could hold out that long.

The retrieval went smoothly enough, with both titans darting into the tree line to seek out the item. Turns out it is a barrel and Annie is the first to find it near the base of a tree. Just as soon as she is reaching down to pick it up Ymir suddenly appears and swoops down to snatch it away. Her smaller size and agility aiding her as she narrowly escapes from Annie's grasp.

Ymir quickly claws her way up the nearest giant tree with the barrel clasped between her jaws. Annie grumbles in irritation and rams her shoulder into the tree causing it to shake and almost makes Ymir lose her grip. The smaller titan leaps to the next tree and proceeds to jump and swing her way back to Hanji and the others.

As the opening comes into view and Ymir is about to leap from the final tree she suddenly finds herself being pulled backwards by the female titan grabbing her leg in one hand. Ymir howls and kicks at her hand as she tries to free herself from the iron grip. Her efforts yield no results, and even finds that biting at her knuckles does little to phase Annie. Ymir's mistake of releasing the barrel from her mouth and clutching it under an arm as she attempts to damage Annie with her teeth doesn't go unnoticed by the female titan.

Annie uses her free hand and grasps the small barrel between two fingers and tugs it away with ease, still holding Ymir in the other as she makes her way into the clearing with both held in her hands.

Sasha is the first to burst into laughter at the sight of Ymir dangling in defeat by one leg in Annie's hand, arms crossed in annoyance at her own predicament. As Sasha is keeling over Hanji is cheering Annie on for her success. Mikasa has a brow raised at the turn out and barely contains a lopsided grin herself. Historia on the other hand is yelling at Ymir for going easy on Annie before falling silent as Ymir is released and falls ungracefully to the ground with a heavy thud shaking the ground.

"Ymir!"

"I'm. Fine." Ymir speaks with her broken words as she shakes off the impact and sits down with a huff. "Cheater." She then says up towards Annie, who looks down at her with a bored expression and shrugs.

"That was an interesting turn of events." Hanji states while scribbling in their notebook, "I'll need you both to give me more details on that after we're finished with everything else. Now though, onto the next thing."

Following that they had to perform a variety of simple exercises, some of which were silly but Hanji insisted on gathering the data. So they balanced, flexed, stretched, jumped and a number of other things. For hours Hanji pushed them for more, practically salivating from the experience.

Bored from the display Sasha decided on a nap beneath a tree while Mikasa and Historia sit next to her. Historia watches on with interest and a constant smile. Mikasa on the other hand has her brows drawn close as she also watches the titans do Hanji's bidding. She can see the fatigue on the female titan's face, and how her movements have become increasingly sluggish. She begins to worry that Annie will overdo it again, and judging by the look on Hanji's face she can tell that they have no intention of stopping anytime soon.

Mikasa sighs and leans back to rest on her weight on her hands, Historia hearing the sigh looks over to her. "Is everything okay Mikasa?" She asks, her voice as soft and sweet as ever.

"I'm fine. I'm just worried about Annie. Last time Hanji had Annie shift she passed out and I had to cut her out of her titan."

"Oh my, that's awful." Her voice now sharing Mikasa's concerned tone. "Do you think we should ask Hanji to let her at least take a break?" Mikasa had considered that, but thought better of it.

"No, it's best to let them get what they can. I think that's what Annie would want also, she wants to make this work and interrupting things now would only slow her progress down."

Historia smiles at her. "Perhaps Ymir is right." She says with a giggle and Mikasa raises a brow at her.

"Right about what?"

"Well… she thinks you two are being intimate together. N-not that it's our business either way. But you do seem very different when speaking of Annie. Sorry if I'm speaking out of turn and I'm not trying to pry, I promise." Historia sputters and then blushes, feeling embarrassed for suddenly taking the conversation in a completely personal direction.

Mikasa sighs again and turns her gaze back to the titans that are currently seated on the ground as Annie shows her crystal hardening ability. One of her large hands are encased in crystal and Hanji is standing on it, poking, prodding and stabbing at it while Ymir watches on. "Intimate isn't quite what I'd call it, not right now anyway It's a bit confusing to be perfectly honest, but I won't concern you with that kind of stuff."

"Oh no, please feel free to talk to me about anything. I'm your friend before anything else." Historia's expression becomes downcast as she continues, "becoming Queen has taken a lot of my personal freedoms away. But I'm still me, a normal person, and a friend that cares, even if I don't get to talk to everyone that often anymore."

Mikasa looks down at the short blonde in surprise and then offers her a smile. "Of course, and I'm glad to have you as a friend Historia." She looks up at her and returns the smile. "But, I do like Annie though."

"So you like her. Does she feel the same way?"

"She's never said it that way, but I'm pretty sure the feeling is mutual. We've been taking things slow between us."

"That's so sweet, I didn't take either of you as the romantic type." Historia gushes and scoots closer to Mikasa, her smile now beaming. "N-not that that's a bad thing and I don't mean any offense by that. But I'm happy for you both. I know that things won't be easy on Annie for a long time, a lot of people would rather see her suffer, or dead, than to allow her to be happy while making amends for her past. But I don't agree with that, I think she deserves happiness, both of you deserve it. Sadly being Queen doesn't grant me that much power, but I'm going to do what I can to help Annie regain her citizenship."

Mikasa smiles upon hearing the determination in Historia's voice. "Thank you Historia, I'm sure Annie will be happy to hear that." Before Historia has a chance to respond a loud rattling scream reverberates through the air making the girls jump. Sasha bolts awake and like some kind of animal starts growling towards the source of the wailing.

All of their eyes focus on Annie as she bellows repeatedly, Hanji bouncing in their excitement jotting down notes the entire time. Ymir seemed the least enthused about the sound as she covers her pointed ears trying to block it out. A few moments later and Annie finally falls silent. Hanji continues writing things down and then asks the two shifters to perform their final task, a spar between them. They all knew this would be how their day would end, and everyone held mixed emotions about the event. Obviously at least one rule is in place, no injuring the nape or doing anything that could result in permanent damage to the human inside. A rule that is easier said than done if things become heated.

Speaking of heated, inside her titan Annie sweats profusely, her breaths heavy as she tries to psyche herself up and keep going until this is over. She also notes how she started to feel ill while screaming. 'Guess I'm reaching my limit, pathetic. I don't understand why I'm still so weak. I'll have to end this stupid spar quickly before I pass out again, I won't let Ymir win this.' With that thought in mind Annie gets comfortable with her stance, arms up and knees bent slightly.

Mikasa rose to her feet as the two titans began to square off, the tension in the air is far too high to stay seated. Sasha who finally calmed down and stopped growling sits next to Historia watching with interest. Hanji stands not nearly far enough from the ensuing brawl to be considered a safe distance, not that they cared.

The air felt thick for what felt like hours as Annie and Ymir just stared at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. Finally Ymir grew impatient and lunged forward on all fours, using her smaller and more agile body to her advantage to pounce around and evade Annie's swinging legs and fists, practically dancing around her.

This obviously began to irritate Annie when she couldn't land a single hit, Ymir's mobility giving her a huge advantage. She keeps biding her time, making only lighthearted attempts to catch up with her movements, waiting for Ymir to wear herself down or to make a mistake. Suddenly the smaller titan changed her tactics and decided to start climbing up Annie's body, claws digging into the exposed muscles.

Annie growls from the slight stings she feels from this and reaches back, gripping onto one of others scrawny legs. She gives it a hard tug and immediately feels claws digging deeper into her. Not caring about the injuries or the sound of muscles tearing she pulls with all her might and finally with a grotesque crunch and rip the tension breaks.

It's not only the tension that breaks, but Ymir's entire right leg breaks as well, almost too easily as it is ripped out from the socket. Annie holds the dangling limb up in front of her, staring at it blankly, 'at least this isn't against the rules.' She thought she heard a terrified scream from the treeline where the others are, likely Historia, but pays it no mind.

Seemingly unfazed by the loss of a limb Ymir takes advantage of Annie's distraction and jumps up onto her shoulders to put her into a headlock, her long arms are barely long enough to make this move even useful. Careful to avoid the nape she begins to tug up on Annie's head and sways back and forth as she attempts to knock the larger titan off balance. The swaying only intensifies how ill Annie is feeling. She's finally had enough as she reaches back and roughly grasps onto Ymir's hair with one hand, and the other crushes over the arm around her throat.

Ymir struggles to break free from the iron like grip but finds she is unable to. With a loud growl from Annie she pulls hard on the arm and almost too easily it is ripped roughly from the joint much like her leg had been. Annie tosses the bleeding limb aside and with a tug from her other hand flings Ymir off of her back and into a large tree. The ground shakes from the impact and Ymir falls limp to the ground as the female titan collapses to one knee, a quivering arm barely keeping her up as steam begins to seep from her body.

"Ymir!" Historia cries out and begins running towards her fallen partner, Ymir already sitting half exposed from her titan breathing heavily but otherwise looks unharmed. Mikasa and Sasha rush towards Annie as the steam continues pouring out of her. Hanji is too engrossed in doing what they do best and touching and prodding the titan even as it burns their hands.

Mikasa engages her maneuver gear pulling herself up to land on Annie's nape, finding that the blonde had yet to emerge. "Annie, can you hear me?" She shouts to where she thinks Annie's head would be beneath the hard tendons and muscle. "If you don't say anything then I'm going to cut you out!"

As if on cue a plume of steam spews from the nape and finally a hole opens up to reveal a sickly Annie. She barely manages to push herself up into a sitting position, legs still attached to her titan, before she's leaning away from Mikasa and vomits. Upon seeing Annie in distress Mikasa kneels down and pulls her fringe away from her face until she's finished emptying her stomach. "You're burning up again."

The steam from the female titan continues to increase as the body slowly begins to dissolve. "I'm going to pull you out of there Annie before this thing falls apart, just hang in there." She says with worry in her voice and then hooks her arms under the weakened blondes arms. After a few strong pulls she manages to free Annie from the fleshy prison and with the half unconscious blonde firmly held in one arm she lowers them to the ground. "Hanji!"

Upon hearing their name Hanji looks over and almost immediately sobers up from the sight of Annie, their fascination with the titan pushed aside as they rush over. "How do you feel Annie? Any injuries?" To that Annie shakes her head and immediately regrets it as she feels sick again.

"Feel like shit." She manages to say, her voice cracks and then she falls into a fit of coughs. Mikasa's lips are pressed thin as she tries to contain her concern while keeping Annie's head propped up.

"Sasha could you bring some water for her please?" Hanji says as they finish checking her temperature. Sasha rushes off to fetch the water and Hanji continues asking Annie questions. All of her responses are halfhearted and soft as she floats in and out of consciousness.

"Annie…" Mikasa says gently while moving a few strands of hair that persistently stuck to the blonde's sweaty face. Hazy blue eyes lazily look up blinking at her, but she doesn't offer a verbal response to hearing her name. Mikasa smiles down at her and soon Sasha returns with the water.

"Drink up Annie, but take it slow. I'm going to go check on Ymir, Mikasa can handle things here." With that Hanji rushes off to the other fallen titan shifter, Sasha in tow, leaving Mikasa alone with Annie.

"About damn time they left." Annie says after taking a few sips of water from the flask held to her lips. Mikasa pulls it away from her face when she speaks, but keeps it close enough in case she wants more.

"Feeling any better now?" Mikasa still has a hand resting against the side of Annie's head cradling it while gently massaging her fingers against her scalp. Annie hums a contented response.

"Better now that I'm not being bothered. I lasted as long as I could, any longer and I'd probably of ended up the same as last time." Annie sighs and relaxes further against Mikasa's lap, leaning her head into the tender touch. "That feels nice by the way."

"I'm glad to hear that, I was beginning to worry with how things were escalating." She laughs softly as she continues kneading into her scalp. Mikasa moves the flask closer to Annie's lips again. "You should drink a little more or else Hanji might get after you when they come back." Annie just stares up at her as she feels the cool steel press lightly against her lips. A little of the fluid leaks out and runs down Annie's cheek, this seems to pull her from the daze she had fallen in without even realizing it and drinks some of the offered liquid.

Annie sighs after Mikasa pulls the flask away again setting it aside. She relaxes again, head comfortably resting on Mikasa's thighs as she looks up at her. The girls share a peaceful moment like this, just gazing at each other with Mikasa now massaging both sides of Annie's head making the blonde feel blissful.

They didn't notice when the others approached them until Ymir broke the moment. "See, they're definitely fuckin- oof." Her crude statement is punished with an elbow in her ribs. Ymir then rolls her eyes and throws an arm over Historia's shoulders pulling her close. "Anyway, while this has been a fun little outing, getting ripped to shreds and all that. Her Highness here and myself need to get back to the capital before the idiots there fuck something up."

"I'm so sorry we can't stay longer, I really wish I could but I have to get back for now. While watching that fight was difficult, and terrifying, I'm still happy I got to see you all even for this short time. I hope I'll have another opportunity very soon." Historia focuses her shimmering gaze down on Annie who had moved to sit upright while she spoke, a worried Mikasa lightly supporting her with a hand against her back. The young Queen smiles down at them and looks pointedly at Annie. "I hope things continue to improve for you Annie. I'll do my best on my end to help things move along as well. I'm really glad that things have turned out this way."

Ymir and Historia soon say their goodbyes and leave ahead of the others. Hanji stretches, their stomach growling in protest for not eating much that day. In response Sasha narrows her eyes at her older partner. "See, you should have eaten more earlier." Sasha reprimands them and then pulls them into a hug. "I'll make you something good to eat when we get back." Hanji smiles as they squeeze Sasha while taking a long steady breath.

"Thank you hon, always looking out for me. How about after dinner I treat you to one of my massages." The tone in Hanji's voice sends a shiver through Sasha, knowing full well that Hanji knows her anatomy better than she herself does and knows all of her weaknesses. She nods with her head against Hanji's chest.

Meanwhile Mikasa had helped Annie up to her feet, making sure not to push her too fast and moves at her slightly sluggish pace. The two held hands as they made their way to the horses to give the brunette's some privacy, both having heard enough of their romantic talk to blush. "Hope they aren't going to be loud tonight." Annie thinks aloud as she pets the horses neck.

"What do you mean?" Not even realizing until now that she's still holding onto Annie's hand. She thinks briefly to let it go but decides against it, seeing as Annie hasn't made an attempt to let go either. It's now that Annie's statement also clicks. "Oh, you mean if they have sex or something. Is it that big a problem if they do get loud?" She asks with a blush on her cheeks just thinking about it, but still curious enough to hear Annie's thoughts.

Annie shrugs. "It's not like being loud is bad itself. I just want to be able to sleep tonight without hearing those two."

"Are you tired?" Annie nods and gently leans against Mikasa's side.

"I could sleep right here if Hanji wouldn't bother me about it." Mikasa giggles and places a gentle kiss on Annie's temple.

"We can go ahead and start heading ba-…"

"Let's get back everyone while we still have daylight, it's been a long and very productive day." Hanji says, interrupting Mikasa. With no complaints they make their way back. Much like earlier that day Annie sits behind Mikasa on their horse, arms wrapped tightly around her waist as she rests firmly against her back.

Unlike earlier however Annie can't seem to keep her hands still, instead one of them absently rubs and traces the curvature of the abs hidden beneath the button up shirt. Mikasa doesn't fail to notice this and blushes, but also doesn't ask her to stop. By the time they arrive at the old castle Annie has fallen asleep, her hands now draped over Mikasa's thighs.

Mikasa ends up carrying the exhausted blonde and puts her to bed. Mikasa would spend the next few hours working out, having felt restless all day, until she's finally exhausted enough to sleep with an arm pulling Annie close against her chest.

* * *

Hopefully the pacing of this chapter was okay. I know I'm dragging the actual MikaAni hooking up part out, but I promise in the next chapter there will be lots of fluff! and maybe even more than that for our ladies. :3 I may start shortening my chapters so I can update faster, but it really just depends how the story flows out of my head. Sometimes I just keep typing and hate ending a chapter in a random spot, unless it's for intentional suspense. :p Anywho! Let me know what your thoughts are of the story so far, it's already much longer than anticipated so feedback is great. :D Until next time~


	11. Growing Pains

Ch 11 Growing Pains

A/N: Following an exhausting day of shifting, Annie lashes out in her sleep. A few days later, Hanji and Sasha go back to town to meet with the Scout Regiment for their return from the most recent expedition outside the walls, leaving Mikasa and Annie alone with each other.

Note: A bit a trauma, a bit of fluff. There is also a bit of time jumping back and forth here, hopefully it won't be confusing.

* * *

A few days tic by. Annie recovered much faster from shifting than the last time, and was given permission from Hanji to freely roam the old castle's grounds. This helped lessen the growing tensions between her and Mikasa from almost always being stuck in a space together. Even though they wanted some closeness, being forced in someone else's presence, as they had been, was more hurtful when they had little to no time for themselves.

For Annie it felt a bit stale. Sure she wanted to get closer to Mikasa, but on her own terms, and having space and time to herself without someone watching over her shoulder was exactly what she needed. This is what she thinks while wandering around outside of the castle, alone, as she explores the massive yard and dead gardens. 'This place is going to be really colorful once spring sets in, shouldn't be too much longer,' she thinks while tugging at a small tree branch filled with unbloomed buds.

Annie's loose hair flutters in a gust of wind, she brings a hand up to hold it out of her face. She scowls at her own lazy decision to not put it up in a bun that day. 'Maybe I should just cut it off,' she wonders while trying to place a mental image of herself with shorter hair. She shakes the idea off, content with the length. Annie then thinks of how Mikasa has taken a liking to stroking her fingers through her hair when it's down, usually only when she's in bed.

A smile tugs at her lips as her thoughts focus on Mikasa, particularly at how increasingly sweet she has been towards Annie. 'I'm turning into a sappy piece of shit.' She laughs quietly for a moment, hugging herself as she calms down and her smile drops when she recalls the morning following her titan shift. 'I can't believe I did that in my sleep.'

* * *

*3 days ago*

"Annie…. Annie! Stop messing around!" Mikasa shouts at Annie, having been woken up from a sharp pain in the back of her neck. She could feel her skin giving under the biting pressure from Annie, it would be beyond the point of bruising if she couldn't get the blonde to wake up. Annie had her limbs tightly wrapped around Mikasa in a way that made it difficult for her to move. "Dammit Annie!" She really didn't want to use too much force and risk hurting Annie while she's unconscious and likely experiencing an intense nightmare, but she was running out of options.

Mikasa could feel the light trickle of fluid down her neck, unsure if it is blood or spit, maybe both. Either way she'd had enough as she flexes and pushes against Annie's arms. She grunts under the strain, Annie really had a strong vice-like grip over her arms and their position only added to the difficulty of getting out of it. She could feel Annie's teeth digging further into her flesh, certain that she is bleeding now.

It takes her a long moment to apply enough force to make Annie's arms budge. Finally once they're pushed far enough away she grabs onto the blonde's wrists, prying them away from her. Unsure of how else to do it Mikasa then jerks herself forward, groaning from the shot of pain down her spine as a sizable chunk of skin rips away with Annie's teeth.

Freed of the vice Mikasa quickly reaches a hand back and gingerly prods the wound on her nape. Pulling the hand back into sight confirms that she is definitely bleeding, and badly. A sputtering cough from behind grabs her attention, cupping a hand over the wound as she turns around. Annie is awake, hunched over and gagging at the metallic taste of blood in her mouth.

Mikasa does her best to keep her cool and retrieves a towel from the bathroom, wetting it and bringing it back, but not before also grabbing a random shirt and pressing it firmly against her nape to slow the bleeding. "Annie, here." She says softly despite the pain still coursing through her as she starts wiping the blood off of Annie's face.

Annie continues coughing and spitting out blood into the towel, not even sure why she has blood in her mouth or where it came from after getting jarred awake so quickly, thinking that maybe she bit her own tongue or lip in her sleep. Mikasa stares at the bloody spot that had pooled onto the pillow, internally cringing before focusing on Annie. It takes the blonde several minutes to calm down and see past the tears that now run down her face brought on from the coughing. She then looks up at Mikasa in horror, quickly realizing where all the blood came from as Mikasa holds a now bloodied shirt against the wound.

"I am so sorry Mikasa, I didn't- realize that I was doing that- I was dreaming- and I was biting my hand and, fuck!" In her panicked state Annie beats herself up mentally until Mikasa places a firm hand on her shoulder, making her stop and look back up at her with fresh tears in her eyes. Ignoring the pain she felt Mikasa couldn't help but think how vulnerable, how weak, how- human Annie looked in that moment. Despite the fact Annie just had a mouthful of her own blood, she couldn't help but lean down and place a kiss on the blonde's lips. It was meant more as a method to hopefully calm the blonde down, but it's a kiss that Annie is quick to pull away from in discomfort with an incredulous expression.

"Don't, right now isn't exactly the time for that." Annie's voice shook as she spoke, feeling more concerned about Mikasa than anything else in that moment.

"It's fine Annie, but, I should get Hanji to look at this right away. The last thing I want to deal with is an infection, and they'll want to know what triggered this to happen." She felt lightheaded, swaying slightly while wondering if she'll need stitches. Annie reaches up and places a hand on Mikasa's shoulder having her turn around and sit down on the bed. She pulls the ruined shirt away from the bite just enough to see how serious it is for herself. She cringes at the sight, cursing loudly before placing the shirt gently back into place and clambering out of the bed.

"Stay here, I'll get Hanji." She says hurriedly before bolting out of the room, the door slamming open loudly.

A few hours and several stitches later Hanji sighs as they sit back to double check their handiwork. "Alright, that should do it. You'll likely have some scarring from this, but it shouldn't be too bad in time. You'll need to keep a close eye on it to watch out for infection, I think it'll be alright though."

"Thank you Hanji." Mikasa says, slowly turning her head from side to side to stretch her now sore muscles. She glances over to Annie who looks like she's about to have a meltdown next to her, fidgeting constantly with her hands balled into fists on her lap.

"Annie." Hanji says firmly to grab the blonde's attention, this gains them a glazed over pair of blue eyes looking at them. "Now that we have time to talk, could you explain how this happened? I'll need you to provide as many details as possible."

Annie complies and explains the dream, nightmare rather, that she was having prior to the incident. She couldn't recall all the details, but she did remember fighting someone, a titan shifter she didn't recognize and in response went to shift into a titan herself. Only to be denied even as she bit wounds up and down her arms as she tried over and over again. Her urgency to shift only increasing when she had seen Mikasa become wounded, the screams almost still echoing in her mind, and then how she became lifeless on the ground.

"I see, perhaps the bit of carnage from your spar with Ymir fueled this dream of yours. Unfortunately Mikasa's neck took the place of your arms in the real world. It's something we'll have to look into in the future, and be careful about." Annie just nods with her eyes focused back down into her lap, unable to clear the guilt from her mind. "For now though let's hope this was a one time thing, and since I keep a stocked first aid kit around I'll give Mikasa some medicine to take."

"Thank you again Hanji, I don't think I could have handled something like this on my own."

Sasha, who had been sitting farther away from the others glances over to Mikasa with a frown before looking to Annie. "You're sure you didn't do it on purpose?" She asks from out of nowhere, her serious tone matching the expression on her face. Everyone looks up at her in disbelief, Annie more so than anyone else. A drawn out pause stretches out before Annie is capable of forming the words, angry that Sasha would even suspect she'd do something like that intentionally.

"Of course I didn't. Biting myself to shift is bad enough, it's not something I would just do to someone- least of all Mikasa." Annie's voice is hoarse but firm as she makes her point known. She wanted to say more, but she also knows that she might lose her cool if she keeps talking and hopes that that was enough to get Sasha off her back.

The brunette doesn't take her eyes off of Annie, analyzing her expressions and every little detail. Finally she sighs loudly and apologizes. "Sorry Annie, I don't want to not trust you, but I also don't want my friend in danger."

"I understand."

"How are you feeling right now Mikasa?" Sasha then directs her attention to her friend.

"Better than before. More sore than anything else. I've gone through worse."

"Ah right, I should get that medicine out." Hanji says while pulling their satchel close and digging around until they pull out a small pouch. They shake it before untying it and pouring out a handful of pills. "These should help dull the pain." They hand two to Mikasa before placing the pill pouch aside. "I'll leave the rest of those with you, take some in a few hours." Hanji then gathers their supplies and stands away from the bed. "For now, I think I'm going to go stretch my legs. This has been one hell of a morning. If you need anything though, let me know."

With that Hanji leaves the room, eyes making contact with Sasha's on the way out. "Right… I'll go too. Get some rest Mikasa and take those pills, I'll check in later with some soup."

"Thank you Sasha, that's not necessary you know."

"No, but I'm still going to do it." With that Sasha sticks out her tongue then leaves after Hanji. As soon as the door clicks shut Mikasa sighs and focuses her gray eyes on Annie, who seems to be refusing to look up at her. She frowns and points to the glass of water sitting on the nightstand next to Annie.

"Could you had me that glass Annie?" She keeps her voice soft and Annie does as she's asked without a word. Mikasa quickly downs the pain pills, setting the empty glass aside she scoots closer to Annie, pulling the distraught woman against her chest.

"Mika-…"

"I'm not mad at you, Annie."

"But-…"

"I don't want you beating yourself up over this, it was out of your control, and I'm fine. Let's just put it behind us quickly, okay?" Mikasa says while rubbing a hand against Annie's arm soothingly.

"It could happen again-" Annie's complaints are silenced when Mikasa presses a kiss against her lips. Like earlier Annie pulls back quickly trying to put distance between them.

"Please, even though I cleaned my mouth out I had blood in there, that's not-" Mikasa doesn't care, it was her own blood after all, as she pulls Annie back against her lips. Annie wants to put up more of a fight about it, to pull away and keep Mikasa from kissing her, but she also doesn't want to. She wants to stay in this comforting embrace with those soft lips caressing her own, but she also doesn't want to. Finally, tired of fighting back and forth with herself over it she sighs into the kiss and relents. Mikasa pulls Annie closer, holding her there against her chest as their hearts thrum in unison. Had the situation been any different Mikasa would have pressed for more, but the ache in her neck wasn't having it, and Annie is certainly not in the right state of mind for such things.

They stayed holed up in the room all day with Mikasa mostly napping from the medicine, and Annie staying close, keeping an eye on her and checking the bandages every few hours. Annie would continue thinking about what happened for the next few days, uncertain about herself and almost afraid to sleep next to Mikasa in the coming nights. But Mikasa wouldn't have any of it and insisted they sleep normally.

* * *

*Present*

'It's been three days since then and nothing like that has happened again, and Mikasa's wound is healing well. Still…' Annie thinks about the scars that will be left behind by something she did, even if unintentional. Mikasa has kept insisting that it's fine and for Annie to not let it bother her, and she tries not to think about it, but sometimes it's hard not to.

Aside from the negative aspect, something about that incident triggered something in them both. Even though Annie is hesitant to be close to Mikasa, especially while sleeping, they've been getting a lot closer. Mikasa is constantly stealing kisses from her, making sure she's feeling okay, and even made lunch for them earlier. Of course these things weren't one sided, Annie had been doing similar things, if for no other reason than Mikasa's enthusiasm was contagious. Well, except for the cooking, that's something Annie hadn't done for them yet and is in no rush to do so.

* * *

*Earlier that day*

Mikasa walks into the bedroom, finding Annie seated out on the balcony. She hadn't left the room much since the incident days ago and Mikasa was getting concerned about it. She decided she'd surprise Annie with some lunch as she balances two plates in her hands, using her butt to close the door behind her. Upon hearing the door close Annie looks over her shoulder at her and then at the plates she carries.

"What's all that?" Annie asks as Mikasa walks out on the balcony with her. She hands one of the plates to her and Annie inspects what's on it, more breakfast than lunch with eggs, bacon and baked potato cut into cubes.

"I thought you might be hungry so I fixed something. It's been a while since I've really cooked anything so I hope it's okay." She sits down next to Annie, watching as her companion pokes at the food.

"You didn't have to go through the trouble." The comment earns her a slight bump from Mikasa's elbow into her own.

"Don't worry about it, just eat. I know you're still caught up on what happened, but I'm already over it. It's healing quickly and doesn't bother me anymore." Mikasa says before taking a bite of bacon. She watches Annie from the corner of her eye as she remains silent but also starts eating.

Their plates are set aside after they're done, and both are on their feet leaning against the railing looking out at the open fields before them. Annie finds herself unsure what to do now as she feels Mikasa staring at her. She then realizes she didn't thank Mikasa for the meal. "Thank you for making lunch, it was all good- and sorry for being this way. I'm having a hard time about it."

"I know, that's why I'm worried about you." Mikasa reaches over and places a hand over Annie's, rubbing her thumb against it. "If there's anything I can do to help let me know." Annie's fringe falls over her right eye, hiding her face from Mikasa until she moves her hand up to move the fussy strands away. Annie watches her, vision no longer obscured as Mikasa's fingers brush across her face. The blonde moves, leaning her forehead against Mikasa's chest and a moment later arms wrap around her back pulling her closer.

"I'll be fine, I just need to sort through my thoughts a bit more." Annie says softly as her fingers clench into Mikasa's shirt.

"Okay, as long as you mean that." Annie nods against her, feeling absorbed by Mikasa's warm embrace. But she still couldn't relax completely and eventually starts pulling away with her gaze focusing to the side.

"Would it be a problem if I walked around on my own for a bit?" Annie asks softly. She feels Mikasa tense briefly as if the question bothered her, but then she relaxed again and slides her arms off of Annie.

"Hanji already gave you permission for that, you don't need to ask me, so long as you don't leave the castle grounds."

"I won't." Annie adds, "I don't exactly have anywhere else to go at this point, and I think I have a good reason to stick around." She turns to face Mikasa finding a blush on the taller girls face, her lips are parted slightly as if she wanted to say something but couldn't form the words. Annie smiles at her then tip toes up to place a gentle kiss on those soft lips before leaving Mikasa to be alone.

* * *

*Present*

That's how Annie ended up here in this garden, accompanied only by her thoughts. She'd been out so long that she hadn't realized just how long until the sky began to turn orange and purple. 'I've been out here all day. I wonder what Mikasa has been doing.' She wonders, looking towards the castle half expecting to find someone watching her from a window. But there is no one as far as she could tell. She is truly alone, and she is starting to realize just how much she disliked the feeling.

'Never realized I would be the clingy type.' She thinks this before beginning to make her way back towards the castle. Once inside it isn't hard to find Mikasa by following the sound of her voice towards a sitting room on the main floor. Sasha is also there eating something, Annie doesn't care enough to try and figure it out as she stands by the door.

Mikasa notices the blonde right away and her expression immediately brightens upon seeing her. "You finally came back. I was about to come look for you before your food got cold." She says pointing to a steaming plate of mashed potatoes and some kind of sauce covered beef and mushrooms. "Sasha made dinner, so I hope you're hungry." Annie looks at the food and realizes she is pretty hungry.

"Thanks Sasha, I could eat." Annie sits next to Mikasa and picks up the nearby plate. Mikasa and Sasha continue their conversation while she eats, something about the scout regiment and upcoming improvements to their maneuver gear. Nothing notably interesting enough to keep the blonde's attention.

"Oh right, I wanted to tell you both this while you were together to save me the trouble, but Hanji and I will be returning to the capital tomorrow. We sent the last military police guy that was stationed here back also, so it will be just you two here for at least a few days."

"I bet he had something to say about being sent out." Mikasa states watching Annie from the corner of her eye who is paying attention to the conversation.

"Yea well, Hanji gets the final say about this situation, so he had no place to dispute their decision. I'm not sure about Hanji but I'm hoping to continue making frequent visits, someone has to make sure you two have a steady flow of supplies at least and I'd be more than happy to volunteer for that. But the scout regiment is due back by noon tomorrow and Hanji must meet with Erwin and the others for their report." Her voice then lowers to a more serious tone. "I hope things went well for them, maybe they made more progress out there."

"Well their recent expeditions have yielded more and more success. They're making it farther out each time so I have no reason to believe this one would be any different. And they have Eren with them."

Sasha smiles at Mikasa and nods. "You know, you've really grown up these past four years Mikasa, I mean obviously but, you're different."

"What makes you says that?" Mikasa never felt any different, more calm perhaps. Annie's attention is now on Mikasa, curious to see what Sasha will point out about her.

"You're a lot less worried about Eren lately, not stressed that he's out there in titan territory. Before you would fight tooth and nail to be right next to him, being his guardian. I guess Eren has matured too though, he's not as hot headed as he used to be, and has gotten a lot better at utilizing his titan form." Sasha eyed Annie for a moment noticing how focused on Mikasa she is and smiles.

Mikasa laughs lightly at the comment. "I guess you're right. I just know how capable he is now, and he doesn't need me watching over his shoulder at every waking moment." Mikasa then feels a light touch on her hand, glancing down she finds Annie's hand resting on hers. The blonde's eyes are focused elsewhere but still Mikasa smiles at her.

Not questioning the subtle display of affection between the two, Sasha decides to call it a night and wanders off to find Hanji. Now alone together Annie leans against Mikasa and rests her head on her shoulder. "Have a good day?" Mikasa asks softly, gaining a silent nod from Annie.

"Were you able to sort out your thoughts?"

"Yeah, a bit." Annie rubs her eyes, feeling tired suddenly. A hand strokes up her back coming to a stop just over her nape. A shiver runs down her spine as Mikasa's fingers lightly stroke along her hairline. She releases a shaky breath and soon those long fingers are playing through her hair, occasionally getting caught in a knot that Mikasa gently removes. She then feels lips press against the top of her head sending a blush to her cheeks.

"You look tired. Maybe we should turn in as well?" Mikasa asks after pulling her lips away and gazes down at Annie. The blonde nods silently then stands and turns to face her before she has a chance to get up. She leans close and places a firm kiss against Mikasa's lips which she gladly leans into, a content hum escaping her throat. Annie reaches down and takes Mikasa's hands in hers before breaking away from the kiss. With a matching blush on their faces Annie tugs Mikasa's hands pulling her up off the seat and leads her to their bedroom upstairs, making sure to be quiet in case the others are asleep.

Annie crawls into the bed first and immediately curls up in the middle, enjoying the feel of the cool sheets beneath her. A moment later she feels the bed dip and her body shifts, sending her rolling against Mikasa and one strong arm pulls her closer.

The next morning Sasha wakes them up with a hard knock on their door, and not waiting for a response, throws it open. "Rise and shine you two!" Her initial response is a pair of grumbles beneath the blankets and a groan as Mikasa forces herself to sit up. She glances at the window, the sun barely peeking over the horizon, then throws a glare back to Sasha.

"You two really couldn't wait an extra hour or two? It's still so early."

Sasha laughs at the response. "Don't tell me Annie's laziness is rubbing off on you already." Mikasa sighs and scratches her head glancing down at her blonde companion whose eyes are still closed in an attempt to go back to sleep.

"Give us a minute and we'll come down to see you two off."

"Alright, but don't take too long, Hanji is already antsy about leaving." Mikasa nods to her and she exits the room. As she's about to look back down at Annie she feels a pair of arms circle her waist. At some point she had snaked behind Mikasa still laying down and now just hugs her waist. Blue eyes groggily looking off at nowhere specific.

Mikasa laughs and turns slightly, reaching down to run her fingers through Annie's loose hair. Annie smiles at the touch and glances up at her. She feels a little silly being like this, smiling and sharing this moment with Mikasa just staring at each other at the early an hour, but she also feels that letting Mikasa see she even has a silly side is okay. She then gets a devious thought and her smile turns into a grin and, before Mikasa has the chance to think, she presses her fingers into the flesh just above her hips. The reaction from Mikasa is both unexpected and satisfying as she jolts and yelps, and soon is pulled into a fit of angry laughter as Annie tickles her.

A string of expletives escape Mikasa's lips between the giggles and gasps as she becomes breathless from the onslaught. It takes everything Annie has just to keep her from pulling away from the torture and she enjoys every minute of hearing the sounds Mikasa makes. Her laughter especially making her feel giggly herself. Eventually she stops and immediately has her hands pinned down to the bed on either side of her head. Mikasa leans over her panting as she recovers her breath.

With her heart pounding Mikasa focuses narrowed eyes down at Annie, a look that promised payback at some point. "I didn't think you'd actually be ticklish." Annie says with an amused grin. Mikasa leans down and presses a hard, chaste kiss against her lips. Before backing away she bites Annie's lower lip, the soft pink flesh is tugged briefly then it snaps back into place as it's released, leaving Annie breathless as Mikasa climbs out of bed.

Clearly ignoring Annie's comment about being ticklish Mikasa heads for the door. "They aren't going to keep waiting, come if you want to." She walks out, and Annie can't help but laugh at how pissed off she is. After having a moment to herself she follows after Mikasa. She runs her tongue across her lips as she walks, the bottom is sore where it had been bitten, it isn't unpleasant though.

'I doubt that's the only punishment I'm going to get for that. So worth it though.' She thinks to herself before stepping outside, easily spotting Mikasa and the others near the stables. Mikasa still looks a bit agitated as she approaches them, gaining a hard glare from the taller girl. 'Definitely still pissed.'

"We were starting to think you'd probably gone back to sleep." Sasha says with a smile.

"Surprisingly no, but it did cross my mind. Not like you need me around to say good-bye's anyway." Annie says nonchalantly, trying to sound as uninterested as possible.

"Hmm, well I can't say for Hanji, but I'm glad you came to see us off. You are one of us after all." This comment takes Annie by surprise, the sudden comradery making her feel awkward and shifts her weight from one foot to the other. Mikasa watches on as Annie struggles to keep her composure and is about to say something when Hanji walks over after saddling the horse and speaks up first.

"Yes, Annie, you are one of us, and you need to start getting that mind of yours back into top condition. That includes waking up in the morning, doing chores, being ready for anything at a moments notice. The Military Police may have been lazy and lenient on you during your time with them, but once we get things rolling with your duties in the Scouting Regiment you can expect to have greater demands and expectations placed on you. You can handle that, can't you? We can rely on you?" Hanji's tone is eerily calm as they speak, it's unnerving to the others.

It's then that Annie fully realizes, that everything falls into place in her mind, that her life is vastly different from what it was before, and it will continue to change around her in the days, months, maybe even years to come. She'll finally be pulled into the Regiment, and live a dangerous lifestyle of fighting titans for the sake of protecting the people she once called enemies. She feels a hand grasp her shoulder, an attempt to get her to respond quickly, the storm gray eyes behind that grasp demanding she stay focused.

She realizes in that moment, that she will soon be fighting side by side with this woman that has held onto such deep feelings for her after all these years, even when they barely knew anything about each other before. This woman that she finds herself falling for more and more every single day that she wakes up next to her. This woman that she wants to not only protect, but fight as a united team against a common foe, for a real cause, for her future. For 'their' future.

All of these thoughts flash through her mind in a instant that feels like hours, and again the hand on her shoulder tightens its grip to a painful degree. The sting fully brings her back to the situation at hand, all eyes are on her as they await her response. She suddenly finds herself, for the first time, actually motivated into throwing her fist over her heart and the other firmly against her back. Her expression is dead serious as her heart pounds in her chest, a heart that has been stolen by the tall woman standing next to her.

"I will devote my heart to this, please place your faith in me. I'm done running, and hiding. I've finally found something that I care about more than myself, that I want to protect. Even if it means giving my life." Her voice grows smaller at the end, moving her gaze from Hanji's pleased smile to Mikasa's surprised expression, her pale cheeks tinted pink from Annie's passionate declaration.

With a laugh Hanji pats Annie's arm, wholly satisfied with the display of enthusiasm. "Good! I'm glad to hear that, and I fully expect you to uphold that promise. For now though we need to get moving, Sasha."

"Alright. Bye you two, take care of each other, and there are plenty of food supplies in the kitchen. I also made a pot of stew that can be reheated and should last a few days. I'll come back when I can with more supplies." Sasha hugs Mikasa without a thought and then turns to Annie who just stares back at her. She grins and pulls Annie into a hug much to the blondes dislike but she endured and even lightly returned the gesture.

Once freed of the hug Annie takes a small step closer towards Mikasa and they both watch as Hanji and Sasha ride off. It's not long before they vanish into the distance, leaving the two alone.

* * *

A/N: Whew, okay, I know I said there would possibly be smut in this chapter but I just didn't get to it, and before I knew it this was already over 5k. I try not to make a chapter too much more than that. Hopefully the neck biting wasn't too traumatic, it's just something that sprouted out of my head at the time, and that there was enough fluff to make up for it. I can safely say, expect smut in the next update! (Finally, I know right?!) But any who, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I'll keep working diligently to get the next out as quickly as possible. Until then, take care!~


End file.
